Dragon Ball Z AH: The Atrox Saga
by LucifVegeta
Summary: After the debilitating escapades on Namek, the Z Fighters find themselves in a daunting position when an unconscious boy plunges down to Earth from the vast reaches of outer space. He claims he is being pursued by a menacing group from the unknown reaches of the universe. But who is he? Why is he on Earth? And most importantly... what sort of dangers follow him?
1. The Beginning

**A/N**: Hey, everybody! This is the new and improved chapter one with my new and improved writing style. I decided to take the time to edit all fifteen of my chapters because I have drastically increased my writing ability over time, and I feel that these chapters do NOT properly showcase the awesomeness that is my story :). If you have already read, I recommend rereading. Things have changed ;).

DISCLAIMER: Dragon Ball Z AH: The Atrox Saga is a completely non-profit story, made by a fan, for fans. I do not own anything affiliated with Dragon Ball Z.

* * *

Deep in the boundless extent of outer space, a massive vehicular object silently whirred past the old images of long forgotten stars. Crew members of all different races wore the same white breastplates, striped torso covers, and bronze shoulder plates inside the disc-shaped ship. Uncommunicative, many of the employees quietly performed their duties while some of the bolder ones sat outside the closed meeting doors.

They could hear the reticent discussions coming from the inside of the discussion room; usually, the room was only used to discuss highly secretive operations involving only the highest levels of tokusentai, such as the Ginyu Force. With that being said, King Cold hardly ever participated in the meetings. Rather, a high-ranking official, such as Zarbon or Dodoria, typically held court. Strangely, on this fateful day, both King Cold and his son, Cooler, were involved in the meeting; naturally, the often-bored crewmen were aghast with delight when they heard that they had the opportunity to perhaps listen in on what would be an incredibly paramount consultation.

Behind the closed doors, Cold rested on his throne chair, filled with red plush and a black outer finish. The circular, steel table was inhabited by a humanoid officer wearing the typical Planet Trade armor. He had light brown skin bulging with muscular definition and black gloves covering his hands. Instead of the typical PTO leg-armor, he wore dark, tight pants. His shaved head and thin mustache gave him an even more manly appearance- at least by Earth standards. Cooler stood with his thin, sleek arms folded over his chest in the corner of the room. A firm scowl laced his face, contradicting the bored expression worn by his father.

"Sir, I recommend making a course of action _immediately_. With all due respect, the injuries Frieza sustained could be fatal... Even... Even for an Arcosian," the soldier muttered. His glance dodged to the side of the prodigious king, careful not to upset him. Despite being relatively unknown to most of the PTO soldiers, the officers all had familiarity with the great king, and knew that the Arcosian leaders were easy to enrage.

"Come now Officer Aldridge, do you seriously doubt my son's ability to survive such petty injuries? I expected better of you," King Cold condescended, resting his head within his palm.

Officer Aldridge fidgeted in his boots and dropped his head downward. "I apologize, my king. But you heard what the medical experts said... Frieza could be in danger!"

"I don't believe so, Officer," King Cold breathed. "Besides, we have a job to do. Our pilot estimates we will arrive on Quantidum Six in approximately four days. This little revolt must be put down; I trust completely in Frieza's ability to survive while we are gone. He is the second strongest Arcosian in our treasured history. Wouldn't you say?"

The terrified officer bobbed his head rapidly and began to speak, but Cooler cut in with his own spiel.

"Father what are you thinking? That pathetic Saiyan dishonored our entire family- no, our entire race! We have to rescue Frieza to find out where we this wretch has run off to!" He furiously barked, glaring daggers into the eyes of the officer. "And as for you... You would do better than to dishonor my family. Get out of my sight!"

Aldridge gulped before nodding and scampering out of the room. As soon as the doors burst open, the awestruck crew members frantically ran about, attempting to pretend they weren't in fact listening to the conversations in the meeting room. Cooler stalked toward the door and slammed it shut before glaring at his father.

Cold sighed, finally raising his head from his palm. "Cooler, what's troubling you?"

The Arcosian sighed in return. "Do you remember back on Planet Paradicia when I was captured by the rebellion?" He implored, turning to look at the wall which was covered by pictures of beautiful Arcosian landscapes. Each picture captured the glorious moments of the most famous Arcosians: Chilled, King Cold, Frieza, among many others.

The great king nodded. "I do. Why are you asking this, my son?"

"Just attempting to quell some... _curiosity_, Father. Tell me, what do you remember of that day?" Cooler asked, continuing to gaze into the portraits on the wall. One in particular seemed to draw him in: the drawn interpretation of Frieza's conquest of an unknown planet.

The king narrowed his eyes in confusion, but attempted to help his son with whatever he needed help with. In this case, it was remembering an event from his past.

"Well," King Cold hesitantly began. "You were stunned by the Paradician's shock troopers and imprisoned in their ki-resistant prison system. Your brother and I were able to force the password out of the meager Paradician guards, and rescued you.. within hours. Is there anything else you would like me to tell you, Cooler? And please, tell me the meaning of this!" He pleaded.

Instantly, Cooler whipped his head around toward the king, frowning. "Tell me the truth, Father... Did you think I was too weak to survive on my own? Could I not have survived imprisonment and torture? You have said yourself that the Paradicians were a decrepit people!"

King Cold shockingly gaped his firm jaw at his son before standing and pushing his chair behind him. "What are you suggesting, Cooler?!" He replied, his blackened eyes enlarged.

"I am _suggesting _that you- and the other Arcosians- are under the impression that Frieza is much more powerful than I am!" He retorted.

The Arcosian king pressed his lips together and turned before walking toward the shut doors of the meeting room. "There is nothing to be ashamed of, my son. Your power level is... proficient enough. Frieza is just... A rare exception."

"A... A _rare exception_?! Father, listen to yourself!" Cooler roared, dropping his act of courtesy and sprawling his limbs in astonishment. "He lost a battle to a SAIYAN! I... I am disrespected and I refuse to continue this tedious charade!"

With that, the younger Ice-jin burst from the room and down the corridors of his father's ship. The great king merely sighed and dropped his head into his palm once again, sitting back on his throne. His son was definitely not known for outbursts and petty displays of anger; in fact, it was Frieza who usually resorted to such reproachful methods. Cooler was always one for inhibition, and his typically calm and collected demeanor had mysteriously changed recently and seemingly without a viable catalyst. Cold sighed and wiped his broad forehead; there was definitely something to watch out for in Cooler's strange behavior.

* * *

Last time, on Dragon Ball Z...

Son Goku, the brave Saiyan warrior from Earth, made the ascension and reached a level of power previously unbeknownst to anyone in the universe, and faced off against the ultimate evil, Frieza. The Arcosian was obnoxiously powerful, but Goku overcame the odds and did the impossible: he bested the sadistic ruler in combat. Despite his advantage in battle, Goku had a voluminous weakness; his heart was blinding his head, and he allowed Frieza to live with regret and embarrassment because of a predisposed opinion that everybody, no matter how evil, could change. Of course, the horrible Ice-jin deceived and once again attempted to slay the Super Saiyan, so Goku was forced to act, and seemingly ended the tyrant's life.

His friends were wished back to Earth with the Dragon Balls, as were the Namekians killed by the Planet Trade Organization's gargantuan assault on Namek. His son, wife, and best friend were awaiting his arrival, but... he never came. Now fatherless and hopelessly terrified of the ample world surrounding him, Son Gohan was forced to endure the darkness that crept upon him and his friends and family, as he was the Earth's protector during the hard times.

Still, he knew that his father would come back eventually. He was probably off training in an effort to further increase his power, in case of an emergency. And so, every night before bed, Gohan would pray to Kami and the Kais, waiting for the day that he would hug his father again, and live life to the fullest. As for the rest of the gang...

* * *

It was fantastically beautiful outside. Vibrant beams of sunlight that once pierced the small island holding the Kame House had now turned into slight shimmers, and the resulting reflection on the calming, turquoise water created a picturesque effect. While the day was beginning to end, there was still a period of time to enjoy quality company, at least for the Z Fighters. Although the perverted old martial arts master, Roshi, preferred to admire his adult magazines on the shores out back, the rest of the Z Fighters and their friends were thoroughly enjoying the get-together.

"So... what do you guys think?" Chi-Chi implored, eagerly looking at her hungry friends who were digging in to her home-cooked roast beef.

"Wow! This is great, Chi-Chi!"

"Yeah, I haven't tasted something this good in a long time!"

"Absolutely fantastic!"

Beaming, Goku's wife sat down opposite Bulma at the wooden dining table, joining Krillin, Yamcha, Puar, and Oolong.

"Thank you. I cooked it myself. It only took a couple of hours," Chi-Chi explained, eying the inhalers of her food with a slight smile.

Despite the enticing smell of Chi-Chi's food, Tien and Chiaotzu were retreated to the couch and its comfort. Strangely, Chiaotzu thought that playing Wii was quite exciting, and Tien played along in fear of disappointing the childish emperor.

"Tien! Stop it! You're horrible at this game! You aren't supposed to kill the mushroom guy!" Chiaotzu complained, throwing his controller down in anger with a deep frown lacing his pale face.

Tien grimaced as he pinched the bridge of his firm nose. His large muscles pulsated with the necessity to train, but alas, being partners with Chiaotzu had its drawbacks. He set his Wiimote down on the green pillows of the couch and popped his neck to the side, relieving the tension and boredom that his neck seemed to be exhibiting, his quiet and peaceful eyes glancing at the saddened face of Chiaotzu.

"Hey, you know I'm not good at these things. Give me a break, alright? Maybe we should go home and train, I need the exercise."

Chiaotzu muttered something to himself and pouted, sighing and folding his arms across his tiny chest. "Fine. Just go easy on me. It's not fair being so far behind you, Tien."

Tien gave a sympathetic smile and patted his friend on the back. Chiaotzu was correct; a noticeable barrier in power made it difficult to train in a legitimate fashion. Still, the best friends would never separate. It was against Tien's better judgment, but the three-eyed hulk refused to abandon the naive emperor. He meant too much to him.

Several feet away, Vegeta leaned against a pillar, arms crossed over his blue tank top and eyes shut fiercely. The only reason he was there was because he couldn't stand to be with Bulma's insufferable parents alone, and also because his precious gravity chamber had strangely malfunctioned just before Bulma left for the party... Of course, he stayed in the shadows, preferring not to engage in meaningless conversation with the common folk.

The only member missing, other than Goku, of course, was Piccolo. He had told Gohan previously that he had "things to do", which could only mean one thing; the secluded Namekian wished to meditate above the pristine and wondrous waterfalls near the North Woods.

* * *

Gohan blankly stared out of the open window in one of the Kame House's bedrooms. He was hunched over a desk with piles of schoolwork resting upon it. He periodically tapped his pencil against the light brown corners of the desk as he rested his head on his hand.

_I wish Piccolo and Dad were here. They're missing a great party. I LOVE doing homework while my friends get to have fun.  
_  
Amidst his sullen thoughts, the young demi-Saiyan heard quiet footsteps pattering up the stairs. He straightened in his chair, grabbed his pencil, and quickly opened his textbook, glancing at the door to wait for his mother's inevitable arrival and tirade. On cue, the door opened, and Chi-Chi strolled in.

"Gohan! How is your math homework coming along? You doing fine?" She asked, narrowing her eyes and looking at the neatly-filled worksheet.

Gohan sighed. "Yes, but can't I have a break? It isn't really fair that I have to do all this work when my friends get to have fun downstairs."

Chi-Chi grinned from ear to ear in an almost disturbing fashion, and shook her head rapidly. "ARE... YOU... KIDDING ME?! WHAT ISN'T FAIR IS THE FACT THAT YOU AREN'T GOING TO GET INTO COLLEGE BECAUSE YOU REFUSE TO WORK HARD! DO YOU UNDERSTAND ME, GOHAN? YOU TRAIN FOR HOURS UPON HOURS AND THEN WHEN I ASK YOU TO DO A SIMPLE THING, YOU REFUSE TO DO IT FOR LONGER THAN 180 MINUTES!"

The child warrior sighed and nodded. "Yes, Mom, I understand."

It wasn't true, though. Gohan hated doing his homework; he felt it was useless since his career was going to be as a warrior anyways. Still, his meekness inhibited him and created a necessity to agree with his mother. She was quite pleased at the outcome.

The mother of Gohan smiled slightly and nodded. "Great! I'm glad you are beginning to see things through my point of view."

She quickly whipped herself around, her white apron still hanging down from her neck, and bounced out of the bedroom. Gohan sighed, ran his fingertips through his long, messy hair, and buried his face within his math textbook, the last bits of sunlight draining from the windowsill.

* * *

Downstairs, the former monk, Krillin, was perched on the top of the kitchen table telling his awe-inspired listeners all about the terror known as Frieza. Yamcha, Oolong, Puar, Bulma, and now Chi-Chi had gathered around him as if he was a storyteller near a campfire.

"Now, Frieza wasn't some huge, hulking monster; he was actually almost as short as me! But don't think that just because he was short that he was weak. Although his first form had a power level of 530,000, when he transformed, man, did it go up! He transformed a total of three times, and in his final form not even Goku could keep up! I don't know how he did it, because Frieza was so powerful. Goku's Spirit Bomb didn't even put a dent in him! If I had to guess, his full power must have been around 100,000,000!" Krillin screamed, attracting gasps from his audience as he smiled with satisfaction.

Yamcha, the desert bandit with the yellow t-shirt and jeans, dropped his jaw after hearing Frieza's estimated power level. His eyes widened as he thought of the possible scenarios that could have occurred.

"Krillin, how the hell did Goku beat this Frieza guy? The last time I saw him when we were both alive, he had a power level of just over 400!" Yamcha exclaimed.

"Don't forget, he was a Super Saiyan," Krillin told Yamcha as he shrugged.

"But... I still don't get it. A Super Saiyan doesn't give you that much of a power increase. It's impossible!" Yamcha reinforced, still unable to comprehend the results of the battle on Namek.

Listening intently but attempting not to was the Saiyan Vegeta. Despite his hatred of Yamcha, he had never attempted to hurt him before, but as he grimaced from the stupidity echoing across the Kame House, he was unable to hold his loathsome nature in any longer. Vegeta clenched his gloved fists and curled his lip upward before bellowing at the human.

"YOU IDIOT! A Super Saiyan is a supreme fighting organism, capable of defeating any enemy, overcoming any challenge, controlling unlimited energy! Not even Frieza can contend with the eloquent grace and combative strength of a Super Saiyan. And as you fools sit and discuss the past, Kakarot is out there training! Woman, this is ridiculous. We're leaving."

The entire gathering, including the awestruck Tien and Chiaotzu, had turned to observe the fuming Saiyan prince. He was shaking, squeezing his hands into fists, and intently staring at Bulma. She was just as astonished at the display of rage from the previously stoic Saiyan. Awkward silence filled the room like a thick fog, until finally, the blue-haired beauty broke it.

"Excuse me? We are not leaving, Vegeta! What the hell do you think you're doing? And stop worrying about besting Goku. We are all on the same side now. Shouldn't you just put that silly rivalry to rest?" She asked, while folding her arms over her chest.

"What rivalry? It is only a rivalry if the opposing side is a legitimate threat," Vegeta muttered, narrowing his dark eyes.

"Wait, I thought you got beat by Goku on Earth a few years ago? Aren't you forgetting that?" Yamcha asked, standing up and attempting to inflict fear into Vegeta's soul.

The Saiyan chuckled and glanced at Yamcha. "How would you know? You got killed by a Saibaman."

Yamcha opened his mouth as if he wished to retort a witty comeback, but realized the painful truth, and quickly sat down with a huff. Bulma, however, was not as pathetic as her friend. With a menacing glare that would terrify even the evilest of creatures, she stared deeply into the dark eyes of Vegeta.

"Don't even start, Vegeta. You and I both know that Goku did a great thing. He saved all of us, including _you, _and you should be more respectful toward him. After all, without him, you would have never been revived after you got killed by that monster. So for the last time, I am kindly asking you to end your bitter dispute with Goku!"

The arrogant Saiyan crossed his arms and smirked, his jet-black hair extending like a flame, and his murky, distinct eyes darkening under Bulma's gaze.

"Saved me? The Prince of all Saiyans? Please! Frieza is quite fortunate that he didn't get the chance to see me at my full power. He would have trembled beneath my very aura, whimpered beneath my boot! And that goes for that fool, Kakarot, as well. If he didn't take me by surprise, I would have defeated them both with ease. Stupid woman! You never know when to shut your mouth."

Krillin and Yamcha looked at each other with wide eyes. They both knew that nothing beneficial was going to occur any time soon, so they slowly backed away from the table and exited the Kame House with Tien, Chiaotzu, and the rest, save Vegeta and Bulma. The Saiyan prince was attempting to withhold from bursting into laughter as he looked down upon the furious woman standing in front of him. His lips curled upward as he admired her passion, even though he knew a tornado of anger was about to strike.

And that it did. The blue-haired harpy shook with rage as she clenched her tiny fists, and seeing Vegeta's condescending smirk only made things worse. Between raspy breaths and clamped teeth, she hissed at Vegeta, before increasing her tone to a scream.

"Listen here, _Prince... _You would never have beaten Goku on Namek, and you never will beat Goku on Earth, or anywhere else! He is a Super Saiyan and you aren't; you will never change that either, because as much as you train, you will never be strong enough!"

As soon as the words were released from her throat, Bulma shuddered. It was not her intention to be so cruel, but her emotions took control; that was something that Vegeta could understand. At least she assumed. But the look on the Saiyan's face showed otherwise. Everything inside of him was telling him to murder the woman for her trepidations, but he couldn't bring himself to even touch her...

The stupefied warrior stood, unable to form an audible sentence out of his slightly opened mouth, in complete awe. Bulma appeared to be feeling the same emotions, and she quickly swallowed and blinked several times, her large, crystalline eyes swiftly ending her lackadaisical moment of astonishment.

"I... I didn't... I didn't mean..."

As the beautiful woman struggled to form a complete sentence, Vegeta could not endure the torturous feeling of not being able to fight back. Stumbling, the Saiyan warrior quickly moved to the Kame House door, before blasting into the skies without another word. Bulma could not trace the hardened warrior for long. The Saiyan's incredible speed propelled him far away by the time her eyes longingly looked toward the darkening sky.

As Vegeta swiftly flew farther and farther away, Bulma sighed and looked down at the ground in agony. Slowly but surely, the rest of the Z Warriors and their friends crept back into the Kame House. Yamcha was the first to voice his opinion, as usual.

"Awesome job, babe. That guy is a creep; way to tell him off!" He exclaimed, grinning from scarred cheek to cheek.

He swept forward and leaned in to hug the saddened girl, and Bulma graciously accepted the offer, although her usual cheery appearance was all but gone. The scarred warrior backed his head away as Bulma buried her head in his chest, and looked at Krillin with wide eyes. The former monk just shrugged. Neither of them understood why Bulma was upset at Vegeta leaving.

"Uh... d-do you want to come back to my place tonight? I could rent something from Blockbuster or something. I know you love movie nights," Yamcha queried to his girlfriend.

Bulma unwrapped her arms from Yamcha and looked at him with a sad smile. "No thanks. That's nice of you, but I have work to do, and I bet Vegeta is gonna be sad. I should really apologize to him," she explained.

"No way! He doesn't deserve it! You're too nice to the guy; after all, he did kill me..." Yamcha muttered, folding his arms over his chest.

"Wait a second, I thought that green alien thing killed you!" Oolong pointed out.

"Shut up Oolong! It doesn't matter, if that Saibaman didn't kill me, he certainly would have!" The warrior exclaimed.

"That doesn't matter anymore, Yamcha. You have to realize he lived a horrendous life until he got to Earth. And yes, I feel bad for him, so that's that. I am going home to apologize. Good night, guys," Bulma stated, as she gave a sympathetic wave to her friends.

She quickly strutted outside and hopped into a plane. It was yellow and had the Capsule Corporation logo on it, clearly made by her father. After the ignition started, the young woman blasted off into the air, not quite sure what to think about the wave of emotions filling her mind.

"Ugh, well that was odd," Krillin muttered to himself, as he started to head upstairs and hit the hay.

_Heh, it's kinda funny. After that whole dramatic episode with Vegeta, I forgot that Tien actually played a video game. Better go turn off the TV._

Krillin jogged to the couch and grabbed the remote. It appeared the nightly news was on. As he glanced to the large television before turning it off for the night, his eyes grew wide, and with a large gasp, he dropped the remote to the ground. On the television screen, was a ship resembling a Saiyan pod.

* * *

A/N: To be honest with my readers and myself, this chapter was pretty horrible before editing it. I completely restarted it! I hope I did a good job, and improved. Thanks for reading, old readers and new, and remember, PLEASE REVIEW!

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	2. Aberrant Arrival

Last time, on Dragon Ball Z... The Z Fighters enjoyed a day of rest and relaxation with their friends, but it soon turned mysterious when an unidentified ship appeared in Sansho Forest.

* * *

_**"I don't know where the boy has gone, my lord. It seems he has gone completely off of my radar."  
**_  
_**"Find him. And do it quickly; if we lose him, our only opportunity will be gone forever. Therefore, if you fail... I will kill you without hesitation."**_

_**"Yes, master. It will be done, master. The Dark Lord will return soon."**_

_**"Yes, soon... Soon, the Kais will pay for their treachery. Soon, the Dark Lord will enslave the universe... Soon, we will be the most powerful force the world has ever known.."**_

* * *

Bulma slowly descended out of her now grounded vehicle, her feet plodding in the freshly cut grass. After entering the compound she went to the main building and swiftly shut the large door, careful not to make too much noise; after all, her parents were probably both asleep. The woman yawned as she plopped down on a chair in the living room, and quickly glanced outside at the beautiful night landscape. The gravity chamber was whirring and currently in use, and Bulma just sighed.

_No surprise he is training. Even though it is pretty late. Maybe I should just go to bed... Ugh, that is definitely not happening. Damn my stupid heart! I won't be able to sleep until I apologize._

Despite the internal battle between sleep and guilt waging war within, the fiery woman found time to relax while waiting for Vegeta to finish his rigorous training. She kicked her feet up on a circular, cushioned ottoman and grabbed the remote, slowly sinking in the soft, fluffy couch.

_Let's see, I need to find SOMETHING that will keep me interested.  
_  
Bulma quickly flipped through the channels on her giant flat-screen television, making faces at each of the strange shows she came across, until she finally stopped on a local news station. Sighing, she dropped the remote on the couch and peered back outside to make sure her angry housemate was not storming across the lawn. She looked back at the screen, which had a flashing, red banner lacing the top margin.

_Huh? Breaking news? I wonder what's going on.  
_  
As soon as the neurons in her active brain enabled her to think those words, she froze. A nameless reporter was in a helicopter, flying over the large treeline in Sansho Forest, and landlocked below was a small pod. It was spherical in shape, and pretty small. There was a red dot sticking out like a sore thumb in the exact center, indicating a release point or some sort of opening mechanism. And unsurprisingly, Bulma had the impulsive reaction that was expected; she assumed it was either Goku, or an intruder.

Muting her television set, she rushed over to a nightstand which held a telephone and immediately picked it up. Worried and excited at the same time, she dialed the Kame House as quick as humanly possible.

* * *

Krillin was pacing across the wooden floor of the Kame House, head down and hands behind his back, when he heard the phone ring. He zoomed toward it and swung it upward, nearly tearing the cord in half and destroying any feasible way to contact anyone from the remote island. He glanced at the caller ID and saw it was from Capsule Corporation.

"Hey, Bulma, this isn't really a good time right now! Turn on the news!" He exclaimed, hesitantly eying the television as if he were expecting a warrior to pop out of the pod.

"Krillin, I called you to tell you that I saw the Saiyan pod! Could it really be Goku?!" She implored through the telephone.

Krillin sighed and shrugged, despite knowing that Bulma could not see the act. "It could, but I doubt it. Where would he get one of those? And we have to consider the possibility that this new visitor could be unfriendly."

Bulma readily responded to the bald monk. "I think you're right. It is highly improbable that Goku could come across a Saiyan pod and feasibly return to Earth in the given time frame based on the distance between Namek and the coordinates that the older pods carried in their records. But then again, their could be many other races that use the same type of transportation as the Saiyans... I really have no clue, Krillin!"

"Well, then... I am gonna go check it out," he muttered.

"Alone?! Are you crazy?! I'm coming with you. And don't even try and stop me, Krillin! I've had a rough night."

"But... It'll be dangerous, Bulma!" The former monk pleaded.

"I told you not to try and stop me. I'm already on my way. I'll see you soon! Oh, and bring Gohan in case it really is Goku. I'm off!" She exclaimed. Krillin could only imagine how quickly she exited her home. It was nearly impossible for the intellectual prodigy to abandon something once she set her mind to it, and he supposed it would be no different no matter the danger.

And therefore, once again, the former monk was completely perplexed with the behavior of women. Bulma was attracted to danger, thrill, and peril- all things that Krillin desperately attempted to avoid. Unless, of course, his friends or family was in danger. Regardless, Bulma's behavior baffled the poor warrior.

_Women... _Krillin internally muttered as he ended the call. He breathed inward and fastened his orange gi before blasting out the window and into the pitch-black night sky.

* * *

The huge trees of the Sansho Forest canopied over the lush landscape below, almost like a guardian angel. The sweet smell of recent rainfall traveled like a mist throughout the damp ground below, and chirps of cicadas and birds audibly enhanced the setting. It was like a rainforest, without the jungle animals.

Traveling downward at a rapidly decelerating rate, Bulma's yellow jet landed quietly in a small clearing surrounded by a flowing creek and a beautiful treeline. Light winds brushed against the intelligent woman as she quickly exited her plane. Bulma was wearing a yellow Capsule Corporation jacket with a blue undershirt, and jeans. Despite the heavy darkness dropping down upon her, she saw the shadowy figures of Krillin, Yamcha, and Gohan; their eyes were transfixed upon something resting in a small crater.

"Hey guys! What's up? I brought flashlights, in case we need them. Has Goku come out yet? What is he waiting for?!" She asked, quickly heading toward the fallen aircraft.

"I don't think it's Goku... He would have come out by now!" Krillin explained with his hands on his hips.

"Well, whoever it is has a strong ki... Should we check it out?" Yamcha implored.

"Uh, ha-ha, I don't know if that's a good idea..." Krillin nervously stated, his eyes dodging Yamcha's.

"C'mon Krillin, don't be such a little girl. Help me open this thing up."

"Yamcha, shouldn't we at least wait for someone a little bit stronger to get here? I mean, I am pretty strong, but... well, you know... Saiyans are typically stronger..."

The scarred warrior sighed and crossed his arms. It appeared that there was no convincing Krillin, and young Gohan was silently sitting away from the rest of the group. While Yamcha didn't put two and two together, Bulma did. She looked sympathetically at Gohan and smiled at the demi-Saiyan, and he reluctantly smiled back, although it was more like a slight quiver of the upper lip. It was apparent to the world that Gohan missed his father dearly; he wasn't used to being apart from Son Goku.

"Gohan, do you want to talk?" Bulma quietly asked the boy.

He replied with a shake of his head, and dropped his face into his cupped hands, leaning forward on the log he was inhabiting. She knew Gohan was troubled; who wouldn't be with a missing father? It was made painfully clear by the distant look Gohan presented as he stared into the empty world around him. He was used to being away from Goku, seeing as he was dead for the majority of Gohan's life. Still, this seemed... different. His relationship with his father had grown during the escapade on Namek, and he dearly missed Goku.

Bulma just shrugged at his sullen actions and looked back at the silent duo of Krillin and Yamcha. The wolf-fang fighter was attempting to figure out a reasonable method of opening the ship, but was struggling mightily, as evident by his frequent curses and fist-slams. Krillin had his back turned, slightly terrified of the possible creature resting in the pod. He was shivering and ever-so-slightly eying the sphere out of the corner of his left eye.

The blue-haired woman was about to offer to help when she heard a slight ruffle behind her. She gulped and bit her bottom lip, afraid to look behind her, but her attraction toward thrill lead her to whip herself around anyways. She came across a sight she was not quite prepared to see; standing in his training gear was a displeased Vegeta. His dark black hair was barely visible, but his short stature, bulging muscles, and intense gaze made him instantly recognizable.

_Why me?! I was definitely not ready to apologize in the middle of a forest! Oh well, I guess I kind of have to now... Be brave, Bulma, you can do this!  
_  
"Uh... H-hi, V-Vegeta..." Bulma stammered, choking under the increased pressure from the Saiyan's sly smirk, and his dark glare.

"Hn."

Bulma narrowed her eyes at the Saiyan. She was prepared to assault him with a bombardment of harsh words because of his previous actions and present attitude, but she held herself back with several deep breaths before releasing a slim apology.

"Listen, before we continue I want to apologize for earlier tonight; it was uncalled for, and I said something that I didn't mean. Can you at least accept my apology?"

The Saiyan warrior gave a simple nod, before sending a suspicious glance at the spacecraft that had previously crashed. He began to walk toward it, when his shoulder was grasped by a feisty Bulma.

"Woah there! You're not out of the dog house just yet, Vegeta! What the HELL do you think you're doing here?! After embarrassing me at Roshi's party, you should have known better!" She screamed in his ear.

Vegeta slightly pushed her hand off of his broad shoulder and smirked slightly. He turned and looked straight into her eyes, which was quite frightening for Bulma, who cowered in fear unintentionally. The Saiyan was short, but his eyes and confident appearance gave him the appearance of being ten feet tall.

"Maybe I just like to make you mad."

He turned around and headed toward the ship, which was being inspected by a clueless Yamcha, and guarded by a terrified Krillin. Unfortunately for the Saiyan, his housemate wasn't finished yet.

"Well, you succeeded! Congratulations, you jerk!" she screamed, glaring at the sarcastic Saiyan prince.

Immediately after she spoke, he spun around with a glare.

"Listen wench, I did not come here to displease you. I came because I sensed a rather unusual power level emitting from this very location. Despite your beliefs, this warrior is not Kakarot. No, he may not even be a Saiyan. Something is off with him, although that is remarkably similar to a Saiyan pod."

With that, Yamcha looked up from the ship and slowly backed away, joining Krillin in the coward area. Gohan sighed, realizing the hopelessness of the situation, and not moving from his pathetic position. Vegeta moved toward the ship, squatted down on one knee, and inputted some sort of code into a control panel. Slowly, the top portion of the pod lifted up, and Vegeta stood up and frowned deeply. His eyes burned through the ship like a flame as he inspected the creature who was either unconscious... or dead.

"V-Vegeta... What is it?" Bulma asked, nervously walking to the pod. She was grasping the shoulders of Yamcha and hiding behind them as she nearly pushed him forward, until they stopped next to the curious Vegeta.

"I do not know. But this is not Kakarot. Do with this boy what you wish; my presence is required no more," Vegeta calmly stated, before blasting into the night.

"Is... is he human?" Bulma asked, looking with astonishment at Yamcha, who shrugged. By the looks of his agape jaw and wide eyes, he was equally as surprised.

The creature in the pod looked to be about twenty years old. He was tan, with deep blue eyes and brunette, spiked hair. He wore a red tank top and black training shorts. Despite several scratches and bruises, the creature did not appear to be harmed.

Bulma, Yamcha, Krillin, and now even Gohan were intrigued by the mysterious creature. They all peered over the pod and observed the silent warrior who slept in the tiny spaceship.

"I think he's alive, guys. His ki presence is noticeable. What are we gonna do with him? We can't just leave him here," Krillin stated. His presence changed from being afraid and nervous to being calm and collected, most likely because of the fact that his possible adversary was out cold.

"Don't look at me. I barely have enough room in my apartment to fit myself," Yamcha exclaimed. "And don't even think about giving a random stranger to Chi-Chi. So, I guess he can either go with Bulma, or with you, Krillin."

"Hold up, we haven't even accounted for the fact that he could be a ruthless killer!" Bulma exclaimed, looking wearily at the young man. "Who knows what his purpose for coming to Earth really is."

"But we also don't know if he is a good guy who got hurt. Goku would help him, so... I want to as well," Krillin softly told Bulma.

Bulma regretfully nodded and looked at Yamcha. "Than it's settled. Krillin will take him to the Kame House and we'll see what happens after that. Be careful, you guys. I'm gonna head home."

With several waves, the gang split up. Krillin held the unconscious warrior and draped him over one shoulder as he grinned and gave his goodbyes. Gohan escaped from the clearing as quickly as he could, still reeling from the false hope. Bulma and Yamcha hugged, and Bulma slyly smirked at the warrior as she held his arms.

"So... What do you say about coming to my place for the night?"

While a typical male human would quickly accept the most generous offer, a clueless dolt like Yamcha was a much harder sell.

"Nah. Gonna head home on my own. That new show, 'King of the Nerds' is on today! Hey, I'll talk to you later, babe."

With that, the oblivious warrior dug his feet into the muddy ground and exploded upward, flying away from the forest. Bulma stood, completely dumbfounded. She looked up at the sky, imagining Yamcha crashing into a plane because of his moronic nature, and tumbling toward the ground while not even noticing his fall.

"OH MY KAMI! Does that moron ever learn! I really need a man who knows how to treat a woman!" She screeched out loud to herself.

Bulma sulked back to her jet with a deep frown imbedded in her face. Yamcha was so clueless. Despite her attraction toward his physical presence, mentally, they were stark contrasts of each other. Bulma, the intelligent scientist with increasing maturity, and Yamcha, the ridiculous warrior who focused on getting women and fighting more than anything else. As much as she hated to admit it, she just liked him because she was lonely, at this point in their relationship. Regardless, she had some thinking to do.

* * *

Rushing upon the flying body of Krillin, the endless black sky continued its seemingly endless slumber. The bald monk silently maneuvered above the Earth's luscious landscape with the unconscious body of the red-shirted visitor hunched over his shoulder. It was definitely uncomfortable for Krillin considering the massive difference of size between the two warriors, but he handled it with indifference; there was more on his mind then petty discomfort.

What had he gotten himself into? Even from the weak ki signal emitted from the unconscious warrior, Krillin could tell that he was outclassed... like usual.

_He could be dangerous... _

But why had he agreed to take him back to the Kame House? Could it be Goku's will seeping through? There was no doubt that in his absence, everyone wished to perform their duties as if he was watching over them. Hell, even Vegeta perked up when he heard his name- even if it was so slight that nobody could notice.

_He could be dangerous...  
_  
But if he was on Earth, would Goku even want Krillin to take in the injured humanoid? Despite Goku's extreme level of trust for nearly every being, there was a level of mystery that differed greatly from past experiences. Despite dealing with Piccolo, Vegeta, and Frieza, this time nobody knew anything about the situation. It could have worried even Goku.

_He could be dangerous...  
_  
Bulma's words rang through his troubled mind continuously. Krillin frowned as he continued his trek throughout the warm air currents, allowing them to brush off of his body and ruffle the clothing of his passenger. Maybe she was right; maybe he was a threat. Either way, there was nothing he could do now. The Kame House was within seconds from view, and he certainly wasn't going to drop the injured creature in the water to drown! It was go time- Krillin gulped as he prepared to land.

* * *

A/N: Thanks everybody! I must admit, this chapter was really droll. Like, REALLY droll. Even with the editing, I don't like it very much...

With that being said, the action is coming! I can't wait, and I hope that you can't either :P

Thanks for reading and PLEASE REVIEW!

**Recommended Stories:  
**  
"A Tortured Soul" by KaiserNight

"Appule's Insurrection" by Pointer39

"Art of Survival" by Niteryde

"Break Through the Limit" by Captain Space

"Bringer of Death" by Npberryhill

"Cognitive Dissonance" by The Forgotten Phoenix

"Cold World" by jjgp1112

"Dragonball New Beginnings: The Ammit Saga" by KyLewin

"Dragon Ball Z: The Earthling Chronicles" by FinalFlashX

"Frozen Memories" by FireStorm1991

"Guardian" by Super Vegetarott

"In the Shadows" by Niteryde

"Justice Enforcer" by KaiserNight

"Kageto: The Saiyan Supreme and the Fate Protectors" by Kagetoworld

"To Live Again" by Niteryde

"Point of No Return" by Niteryde

"Rediscovering Honor" by LPphreek

"Saiyan Rising" by EFJRAD

"Second Chance" by Full Power

"Side Story- Sibling Ties" by FireStorm1991

"Sins of the Father" by Super Vegetarott

"The Yamucha Chronicle" by DoraMouse

"Zarbon's Rebellion" by FinalFlashX

**Also...**

"The Terror of Mewtwo" by LucifVegeta

"When Worlds Collide" by LucifVegeta and FireStorm1991

DISCLAIMER: Dragon Ball Z AH: The Atrox Saga is a completely non-profit story, made by a fan, for fans. I do not own anything affiliated with Dragon Ball Z.


	3. Roy

Last time, on Dragon Ball Z... Bulma, Vegeta, Krillin, Yamcha, and Gohan went to investigate the mysterious ship, only to find a young man resembling a human or Saiyan, unconscious. Krillin decided to take him to the Kame House and give him a chance to heal, although Bulma was not fond of taking that risk.

* * *

_**"My lord, our best scouts have searched everywhere within five parsecs and have yet to find any trace of the boy. There is no simple reason for his disappearance; someone must have purposely changed the coordinates. He was unconscious the entire flight, he could not have done it himself."  
**_

_**"Expand your search. Choose planets with habitable conditions to be inspected more carefully. We cannot lose him. Ultimate power is within our grasp; I will not let it slip through our fingers."  
**_

_**"Yes, Master."**_

* * *

His eyes slowly opened, shut again, and then opened a little more quickly. There was a thick fog seemingly seeping through his eyes that prevented normal vision, but it was a natural effect after a long slumber. The young adult, when he was able to see, clenched his hands together several times and performed basic arm stretches as he slowly sat up. He grimaced in pain and looked down at his current appearance. Despite the heavy pain being inflicted in his arms, there were no noticeable injuries, just minor bruises and cuts. regular training clothes rested atop his chiseled body; it made him look extremely out of place in the small bed made for a child.

He slowly removed his tired legs from the red sheets and jumped down to the floor. Wiping his eyes and yawning, the muscular creature was now considered to be awake. He looked at each corner of the room, and as he took in the unfamiliar sights, he pushed his bruised hand through his chocolatey, spiked hair.

_Where the hell am I? I don't recognize any of this... I... I cannot be in Hamaal. Last thing I remember was that I was compromised and had to make my escape... But from who?  
_  
Amidst the troubled warrior's thoughts, someone tapped on the door before slowly pushing it open. The mysterious boy quickly dropped into a fighting stance, but widened his eyes when a tempting aroma flooded the room. On the other side of the door was an old turtle, carrying a silver platter of eggs, golden hashbrowns, bacon, and fruit. Despite Turtle's initial fear, he braved the storm and gulped before speaking.

"H-hello, sir. I have your breakfast, if you want it... "

The man eased out of his stance. _This smells too good to pass up... Even if this guy is evil, I bet I can handle him.  
_  
He dashed toward the glimmering plate of goodness, and inhaled the food like a vacuum. Turtle was shocked at the display of rudeness and speed, but quickly reminded himself that there were three Saiyans who carried the same eating habits. Turtle was an intelligent creature, and based on the manners of the creature as well as the muscular structure and incredible speed, he assumed that this creature was a Saiyan. The boy quickly spoke as Turtle stared at the empty plate.

"Thank you for the food, it was delicious! But now... Do you mind telling me where we are? And, are you the ruler of this planet?"

The man eagerly stared at Turtle awaiting his response, smiling slightly. Regardless of the unusual occurrence that delivered him to Earth, Turtle was nearly fearless in his presence; it seemed as if the man was trustworthy.

"I am not the ruler of this planet called Earth. Please venture to the living room. My friends would like to meet you," he stoically stated, not at all phased by the naivety presented before him.

The mysterious creature nodded and strolled down the wooden staircase behind Turtle. At the bottom of the staircase, in the living room, Krillin and Roshi stood. Krillin's face was red and he was grinding his teeth, as he was visibly nervous. He was holding a ball of energy behind his back, ready to attack the creature if push came to shove. Despite his initial trust of the man, Bulma's words had haunted him all of the last night. He swallowed as a bead of sweat slivered down his face and dropped to the ground.

"Hello, I'm Krillin. N-nice to meet you," he stammered.

"And I'm Roshi," the wise master stated confidently, suspiciously eying the man's ocean-like eyes.

"Hey, my name is Roy. Can you tell me where we are?" He asked, glancing outside at the magnificent body of flowing water that surrounded the Kame House.

Krillin and Roshi looked perplexed. _If he doesn't know why he is here, maybe he isn't a bad guy after all_, Krillin thought.

"You- we, I guess- are on a planet called Earth in the Solar System known as the Milky Way."

Roy's eyebrows furrowed. "How close are we to a planet known as Hamaal?"

Krillin and Roshi exchanged worried glances. The former monk absorbed his ki blast. It was painfully obvious that this creature known as Roy had no idea what was going on... Krillin had a feeling that he wasn't going to be a threat.

"I've never heard of it, bro. We don't get out much from this planet... But I think you might want to see Kami and Mr. Popo. They are good with this kinda thing. Kami is the Guardian of Earth, and Popo is his friend and caretaker. Do you want them to take you back to Hamaal?" Krillin implored, attempting to decipher the purpose of Roy's trip to Earth.

Roy shook his head quickly. "No. Hamaal was destroyed, so it would be kind of pointless to go back there... I just can't remember how it was destroyed! Ugh, I must've really hit my head hard or something."

"Then why do you want to know how close we are? What happened to you before you landed here? You were out cold. Do you remember anything?" Krillin asked, trying to help the strange man, Saiyan, whatever it was that was standing in his house.

"I wish I knew more about my recent memories, Krillin," Roy stated. "I remember most if not all of my long-term memories. I know from stories that my planet was conquered by some tyrant. I don't know who he was, but he took it over. My father was just a boy when that happened, and he escaped the massacre with my mother. They traveled to a planet known as Korbok, and that is where I was born and that is where I grew up. We were the last remaining of my kind. And that is all from stories. What I remember from experience is that my parents died when I was just a young boy, so I had to fend for myself. For some strange reason, however, people were looking for me. I don't know why. So, I traveled to Hamaal to avoid them. It was only a few months ago when they found me, and destroyed Hamaal. I escaped in my pod, but they captured me and rerouted my course."

Krillin and Roshi were now drooling at the mouth, their jaws both dropping what seemed to be ten feet each. Their cognitive processors were not meant to take in this much information at one time, and it was taking its toll.

"So... Roy... Does that mean your enemies sent you here to Earth on purpose?" Roshi asked.

Roy shrugged and sighed consecutively. "I don't think so. My pod must have had a malfunction or something of the sort. And if that's the case... If that's the case, that means that they will track me here to Earth and attempt to destroy it! I'm sorry for coming here, but I really have to go; my presence is only endangering you guys!" Roy exclaimed.

As the warrior turned to exit the quaint island home, Krillin knew that he had to stop him. It was a rash decision, and despite his initial worry, the human reluctantly stood by his belief that Goku would never let a young man get himself endangered. He shot his hand forward and grabbed Roy's shoulder; Roy stopped moving and twisted his head to the side to look back at Krillin.

"Roy, don't leave just yet! Running away from the problem won't do any good; we could help you. I don't want you to get yourself into trouble attempting to save us. The fact is, you were brought here and fell into our protection, and I am not going to let you just leave. Besides- we have the warrior who beat Frieza on our side!" Krillin proclaimed proudly, smiling at the mere thought of his best friend.

Roy widened his deep blue eyes in disbelief. "G-Goku is here?"

Krillin and Roshi exchanged shocked glances. How big of a following did Goku have around the universe? It had only been a year since Goku defeated Frieza on the ravaged Planet Namek. As if Roshi read Krillin's mind, he spoke up.

"No, he is not, Roy. He hasn't been here in an entire year. We believe he is out training to prepare for future threats; threats like this one. If we need him, I'm sure we can find a way to reach him. Now... How strong are these pursuers?"

"Out training, huh... Well, I suppose I would like to meet him eventually; Frieza was one of the strongest creatures in the universe," Roy pointed out. "And as for my enemies... Well, I truly have no idea. I don't know who they are. I don't know why they want me. All I know is that they _do _want me."

"Well, regardless of the unknown power levels of these creatures, Goku is the strongest warrior of all time. He can help you. This way, you can get rid of your problem once and for all," Krillin suggested.

Roy nodded and was about to respond, when his head jolted upward and toward the sky. Krillin's immediately followed, as did Roshi's.

"Do... Do you feel that?" Roy asked shakily.

Krillin and Roshi each nodded, feeling out the strange energy sensed above; whatever it was, it was powerful. Directly after, a slight whirring sound echoed above, gaining decibels each passing second. The three warriors were speechless; none of them had any clue what was going on. As they looked at each other in silence, the ground started to rumble. As the sound increased in loudness, the floors of the Kame House shook more. Outside, abnormally large waves built up and crashed against the sandy shore and the small house.

"What the hell is happening?!" Krillin screamed, although his voice was drowned out by the violent waves and strange humming sound. On cue, the vibrations increased and suddenly, out the window, something bulldozed by, creating a huge rush of wind that nearly knocked the three men off of their feet. Still, they were functioning at a level high enough to visually put together the image that they just had the displeasure of seeing.

A black disc with a gray, tiled bottom and an orange, lined top that contained a gray tip. Alternating green circles and yellow rectangles stamped on the black middle. It was an Arcosian ship.

* * *

CRACK! Once again, Yamcha rested the slim, wooden bat upon his shoulder as he admired the withered baseball sail miles past the outfield fences. All the defensive players could do was stare at the sky and wait for the booming blast to halter in movement, but they knew better... Yamcha's hits had a tendency to land nearly twenty seconds after contact.

The West City Titans were undefeated every single year. Every. Single. Year. Protests were held (nonviolent ones, luckily) to attempt and ban Yamcha from the Arena Baseball League, with its participants claiming everything from steroids to paying the opposing pitchers. Like a classy and prestigious warrior should, Yamcha ignored the obnoxious rioters- on the other hand, he reveled in his spotlight and showboated whenever he felt it was necessary. One point was clear: the bandit enjoyed praise.

"Well, that was easy," Yamcha muttered for what seemed to be the twelve-millionth time. The cool, metallic surface of the dugout bench called to Yamcha as he plopped down, awaiting the inevitable praise from his coaches.

"Great job, Son," his head coach told, giving the warrior a fist bump. "Let's get that win."

Yamcha nodded and clenched his fist with a slight smile. "That won't be a problem, Coach. Just hope the rest of the lineup can get some hits so I can bring them home!"

"You can bet your ass that the rest of this team will play their hearts out," he said, smiling. "Anything to keep you on the Titans!"

The scar-faced warrior was about to respond when his heart began to race; in the distance, a huge power was felt. It was bigger than any other power ever felt, but yet... It was masked... It was so difficult to read!

"W-what is that?!" Yamcha stammered, causing half of the dugout to turn toward him.

"What's what?"

The bandit pulsed his lips and gnashed his teeth together- whatever it was, it was dangerous. "Uh... It's, uh... It's nothing."

_Could this be Goku? He feels so... different! It must be; there's no other explanation for it! I should probably check it out, but I'm sure it's nothing..._

* * *

A/N: Thanks everybody! I must admit, this chapter was really droll. Like, REALLY droll. Even with the editing, I don't like it very much...

With that being said, the action is coming! I can't wait, and I hope that you can't either :P

Thanks for reading and PLEASE REVIEW!

**Recommended Stories:  
**  
"A Tortured Soul" by KaiserNight

"Appule's Insurrection" by Pointer39

"Art of Survival" by Niteryde

"Break Through the Limit" by Captain Space

"Bringer of Death" by Npberryhill

"Cognitive Dissonance" by The Forgotten Phoenix

"Cold World" by jjgp1112

"Dragonball New Beginnings: The Ammit Saga" by KyLewin

"Dragon Ball Z: The Earthling Chronicles" by FinalFlashX

"Frozen Memories" by FireStorm1991

"Guardian" by Super Vegetarott

"In the Shadows" by Niteryde

"Justice Enforcer" by KaiserNight

"Kageto: The Saiyan Supreme and the Fate Protectors" by Kagetoworld

"To Live Again" by Niteryde

"Point of No Return" by Niteryde

"Rediscovering Honor" by LPphreek

"Saiyan Rising" by EFJRAD

"Second Chance" by Full Power

"Side Story- Sibling Ties" by FireStorm1991

"Sins of the Father" by Super Vegetarott

"The Yamucha Chronicle" by DoraMouse

"Zarbon's Rebellion" by FinalFlashX

**Also...**

"The Terror of Mewtwo" by LucifVegeta

"When Worlds Collide" by LucifVegeta and FireStorm1991

DISCLAIMER: Dragon Ball Z AH: The Atrox Saga is a completely non-profit story, made by a fan, for fans. I do not own anything affiliated with Dragon Ball Z.


	4. Ironclad Strength

Last time, on Dragon Ball Z... The mysterious man woke up. His name is Roy, and he claims to be from a planet called Hamaal, where evil enemies are searching for him. He believes that they will attempt to find him on Earth... He says his parents died when he was very young and he has been on the run for years, yet he doesn't know who his enemies truly are. And to make matters worse... an Arcosian ship was seen on Earth!

* * *

_**"Master, our scouts have finished scrounging the area. There are several planets that support high power levels; we believe that the boy is on one of them. The most likely one is called... Earth."  
**_

_**"Yes, yes, good... If it is truly him, take him back to me immediately and dispose of the planet as you exit. You must act quickly, my friend."  
**_

_**"Very well. Willingly or not, the young fool will be ours."**_

* * *

Vegeta stealthily stalked into the Capsule Corporation main building with just training shorts on. With a slight nod to Bulma's parents, who were nestled on the fluffy couch watching a movie, he swung open the metallic refrigerator door. After intently observing and sniffing the aromas misting out of the food storage machine, Vegeta swiped several morsels, including six freshly prepared sub sandwiches, complete with flavorful meats and spicy sauces. He also grabbed two bowls of succulent fruits and vegetables to complete his post-training snack. Despite his gargantuan breakfast just several hours in the past, the Saiyan warrior loved his Earth food.

The scenario placed before the Saiyan was quite awkward as Bulma's parents inched closer together and looked at each other longingly. Vegeta quickly gobbled his sandwiches, fruits, and veggies and slithered up the stairs, attempting to drown out the noises in the background. Once he got into his bedroom he quickly slammed the door and muttered something to himself, throwing off his sweaty and bloody training shorts. His shirt had already been decimated by training bots and he grimly looked down at several gashes on his chest that were oozing deep red blood; he grimaced in pain as he traced their paths, and frowned with disgust as he whipped himself around to go to his bathroom.

Immediately, the chiseled Saiyan prince turned the shower handle to its hottest setting, and glided into the rush of excruciatingly hot water. His upper lip curled upward as the Saiyan warrior bent his neck backward and looked up into the water, feeling the painful cleansing of the wounds on his chest. Despite the rush of pain, Vegeta still knew that his training wasn't enough to push him to the next plateau.

_My training was insufficient today. 400X gravity will not suffice; tomorrow I have to make sure I double my time spent and increase the gravity to 450X.  
_  
The precipitation from the nozzle above bounced off of Vegeta's body as he let his mind wander in the intense heat. After several moments, he let out a furious growl and slammed his fist into the wall, easily creating a hole. The snarl on his face easily displayed inner rage... Particularly at one Saiyan...

_Damn you, Kakarot! I have been training in intense gravity the likes of which you have never even comprehended before, and yet, YOU are the Super Saiyan while I am in your footprints, always following you! But... But that will all change soon enough! I can feel this power on the edge of my soul, awaiting the precise moment to escape... The time is coming, Kakarot, and when it does... When it does, you should be ready for me. For I will most certainly be ready for you._

Vegeta continued his mental tirade as his shower dragged on. The need to beat Kakarot was an incessant nag in the frontal cortex of his brain, constantly being played like a videotape. Kakarot defeating Frieza while he failed. Kakarot achieving Super Saiyan while he failed. The list went on, and on, and on, and on...

Suddenly, the Saiyan warrior's trance was broken as his eyes snapped open. His jaw plummeted downward as his typically stoic expression changed into one of pure distaste and horror. The same power that was felt by Krillin and Roy was felt by Vegeta; it was dangerous, powerful, and yet heavily suppressed. A strange, creeping feeling of dread floated above him as he attempted to delve into the power. For some odd reason, he could not feel anything behind it, no matter how hard he tried. It avoided him; the bearer of such a power was highly experienced in energy manipulation.

_What the hell is happening? I haven't felt such a power... Since Frieza! But that means Kakarot failed to kill him on Namek... Impossible! I must see what this is!  
_  
Immediately, Vegeta exited the shower and flared his energy, succeeding in drying himself off. He swiftly maneuvered to his dresser and threw on a blue training tank top and black pants, and rapidly ventured down the stairs of the compound. Awaiting his hurried presence was the blue-haired beauty, Bulma, instead of her parents. She muted the television as soon as she saw his hurry.

"What's the matter, Vegeta? Where are you off to?" She asked curiously.

The Saiyan had no intention of stopping, but gnashed his teeth in fury as he realized what a mistake that would be. He hesitantly halted his progressions and turned to look at Bulma.

"I feel an incredibly powerful creature landing on this planet. It is not Kakarot, of that I am sure." The warrior turned his head back around. "It... It could very well be Frieza; I have not felt a power this strange since Namek."

Bulma's eyes multiplied in size and she gasped loudly, putting her delicate hand on her mouth. The very mention of Frieza was enough to send many people cowering in fear; Bulma had never even seen him before, and she was still terrified beyond belief.

"Are you fucking crazy?! You're going to fight Frieza ALONE?!"

Vegeta growled as he pinched the bridge of his nose in annoyance. "Woman, this is no time for petty arguments. I don't need any help defeating this creature. Those weaklings you call your friends would only be a minor hindrance to this power, even in his suppressed state."

Despite Vegeta's best attempts, he knew that the woman would never give in. She frowned and put her hands on her hips as she stood up, looking at him sternly in the eye like his mother.

"If you don't call Yamcha, you are not going, Vegeta!"

The Saiyan warrior smirked and stared back at Bulma. "You and I both know that he would die the second we landed near Frieza. And I welcome you to try and stop me, but I am leaving. You should be thrilled I am helping protect your pathetic little planet."

With that, Vegeta instantly vanished, or so it seemed. In reality, he powered up and flew out the door, but to the naked eye of a regular human like Bulma, the intense speed made it seem like Vegeta disappeared. Bulma narrowed her eyes and sighed, plopping back down on the couch in defeat. Vegeta was headstrong and stubborn, and she had a terrible feeling that something bad was going to happen to him...

* * *

Roy, Krillin, and Roshi all stood in silence, staring out the window at the ghastly sight pictured before them. Just moments ago, an Arcosian ship had passed by without hesitation, moving downward at a steady pace as if it was going to land at any moment. They had to act quickly, but alas, none of them knew what to do. Finally, Roy broke the silence.

"What is going on?! I wasn't planning on fighting anyone this soon..." He muttered, still slightly taken aback by the display from the Arcosian ship.

"I'll tell you what's going on," Roshi gravely stated. "This guy is dangerous, regardless of the fact that he may not be Frieza, who, by the way, is an Arcosian. It could be a mere coincidence that this ship is an Arcosian ship, based on what I have heard from Krillin, but anyways- his power is different; it is unlike anything I have ever felt before, and that's saying something, considering my age and experience."

Roy nodded and looked immediately at Krillin to hear his point of view. The former monk was staring outside like Roshi, but was not as calm. He was frantically tapping his left foot against the wooden floor and chattering his teeth.

"What's up, Krillin?" Roy implored, careful not to upset the monk. Roy didn't know that Krillin was killed by Frieza, but he assumed there was some sort of past between them.

Krillin eyed Roy and swallowed. "T-this... This is the worst creature who has ever existed... F-Frieza! He killed me, you know that? He literally killed me! I am not going out there to fight him!" Krillin whined.

Roy glanced outside, and saw the massive flying machine coming to a halt and beginning a major descent, far in the distance. Roshi and Krillin saw it to, and neither spoke. It was painfully obvious to Roy that nothing would be done without him, and he was extremely eager to impress his friends, despite his building sense of fear. He sighed and raised his energy, preparing to take flight.

"I guess now is the best time to go see whom this really is. What do you say, Krillin?" Roy asked, eying the bald warrior carefully.

Krillin was about to resist when Roy took off into the air, and through the open window.

"What the hell are you doing?!" Krilin screamed, but it was too late. He burst into the air to follow him. "Master Roshi, you stay back. I have to make sure Roy is alright. We'll be alright!... I hope..."

With a subtle wave, Krillin burst into the air to follow Roy.

* * *

After several seconds, the duo landed near the ship. It had yet to open; the being inside had not revealed himself yet. Roy was actually smirking at the situation. It seemed his confidence soared when it came time to battle. Krillin just stood next to him, and despite the fact that he was physically much smaller, mentally he felt like a dwarf compared to Roy's soaring levels of poise.

And as if Krillin's distress was not high enough, out of the corner of his eye, he noticed someone approaching. The prideful Saiyan prince, Vegeta, landed next to him, frowning deeply with his dark eyes staring intently at the landlocked ship. Krillin quickly turned to Roy.

"Roy, this is Vegeta. He... He is on our side, I guess."

Roy nodded at Vegeta and he turned away with no acknowledgment.

"What are you two weaklings doing here?" Vegeta sarcastically queried, staring at the unmoving space vessel.

Both warriors were about to angrily retaliate when they noticed slight movement on the ship; the doors were opening. Like a drawbridge, the main door declined in its position. It slowly came to a stop once it hit the ground. Standing in the ship and staring down at the three warriors was not Frieza, nor was it an Arcosian.

The creature was nearly 6'4", and humanoid, although it was impossible to tell anything else. He had pitch black armor covering every inch of his body. Golden spikes protruded out of the outsides and enlarged as they went upward, starting at very small at his feet and very large at his shoulders. His mask was completely faceless, except for two gray slits for the creature's eyes, and small golden spikes outlining it. He was standing confidently, his arms folded across his chest, his head up, and his chest outward.

He stood still, observing the natural environment near him. It appeared he was completely unaware of the three warriors standing before him; either that, or he chose to ignore them as if they were mere insects to a giant.

Vegeta grunted and curled his lip upward while narrowing his eyes. "Who the hell are you supposed to be?!"

The creature disregarded the comment and gave the impression that he did not even hear the belligerent comment coming from the Saiyan warrior as he continued to admire the lush forestry of the planet. Vegeta growled and narrowed his eyes as a vein bulged on his forehead. He did not take kindly to being ignored, especially by a strange warrior in an Arcosian ship.

"You will answer me right now, or I will rip you to shreds! DO YOU HEAR ME?!" Vegeta screamed.

Now, the warrior turned to look at Vegeta. He kept his posture and phased from sight, appearing several feet in front of the trio. "I do not respond to ignorant and vulgar braggarts like yourself."

Vegeta's eyes widened for several moments, but returned to normal with a slight tremble. The creature's voice was fearsome, yet strange... It was deep, but flaring; almost like Sean Connery mixed with Darth Vader.

He turned to Krillin and Roy, and although he kept his arms crossed, he was noticeably more relaxed. "I assume you are the supreme fighters of Earth?"

Krillin gulped and looked at Roy, who was happy to take over as the orator in the group. "It doesn't matter who we are. What matters is your plan; what are you doing here?" He asked firmly, narrowing his eyes at the mysterious visitor.

The black-armored warrior chuckled deeply, his arms still folded over his chest. "Nobody cared who I was until I put on the mask," he muttered to himself. "But no matter. I will tell you why I am here. My main objective as a warrior is to find suitable competition; I believed there to be a reasonable competitor on this planet. His name... is Goku."

Vegeta sneered at the warrior while Krillin and Roy both eased up slightly. Despite the fearsome appearance and voice, the warrior gave off a strange feeling of trust. It was like Krillin was instantly drawn toward him, although Roy remained cautious.

"Fair enough. Although, one question- why are you in an Arco-whatever ship?" He asked, raising his eyebrows.

The warrior replied without moving. "I killed Frieza's father, King Cold, and 'borrowed' his ship. You should be thanking me; he had already inputted the coordinates for your planet. Unknowingly, I saved all of you from certain death, and THIS is how you treat me? Ha-ha-ha, I am just kidding with you, my friends. But back on topic... which one of you is Goku?"

Roy and Krillin looked at each other, neither knowing what to say. Vegeta scoffed at the warrior. "You must be joking. Kakarot is not here. Although I understand that you mixed us up, for my power is clearly the strongest on this planet."

A slight chuckle emerged from underneath the darkened mask placed before Vegeta. "Ha-ha-ha-ha, well my friend, from what I sense, that is true. Now who are you three? If you still do not trust me, I don't know what else I can do other than give you my word that I am _not _here to harm any of you," the strange creature stated fiercely, suddenly breaking off from his previously jovial tone.

Roy narrowed his eyes and glanced at Krillin and Vegeta. It appeared Vegeta still did not have the warrior's trust. Krillin, however, was enamored with him. He was grinning and staring happily at the faceless mask stamped on the warrior's face.

"I'm Krillin, this is Roy, and this is Vegeta", the bald monk cheerfully stated, completely shifting the suspicious tone of his voice from a few minutes ago into a joyous chirp.

For several moments, wisps of silence fluttered across the air, as all three warriors from Earth stared at the new visitor. A slight gasp could be audibly heard through his dark mask, and then he spoke.

"R-Roy? Interesting... I have heard many things about you."

Roy glanced at Krillin who simply shrugged, still seemingly in a trance for no apparent reason. Something was definitely wrong, but Roy had no idea what it could be. He turned back to look at the warrior.

"What the hell have you heard about me? I'm not exactly a figurehead," Roy implored, eying the warrior suspiciously.

"Just a few things here and there. Nothing to concern yourself over. Now, my name is Golar, and I am from Balotelli. Like I said, I came to Earth to test my abilities in combat. All three of you would be difficult challenges for me to face. Would any of you like to spar? Roy, perhaps?" Golar eagerly asked, awaiting an answer.

"HAH! If you believe these two to be challenges, I would wipe the floor with you. Now excuse me for interrupting this little love-fest, but this is truly a waste of my time. I was actually hoping that you would be Frieza! I will be back at the gravity chamber; don't feel free to contact me," Vegeta austerely commanded.

He powered up and lifted himself into the air, before bursting away with a flash of energy.

"Quite a friend you have there," Roy muttered to Krillin, who nodded.

The former monk looked at Golar and smirked, while narrowing his eyes. "Sure, I'll spar with you. I bet I could teach you a thing or two!"

Golar chuckled while standing in the same position, and Krillin circled his arms forward and then backward. Roy's jaw plumed to the ground. Was Krillin serious? Just a few minutes ago, the bald fighter was horrified out of his mind, and knew for a fact that Golar was stronger than him!

"Uh... Krillin, what the hell are you doing? You are going to get your ass kicked!" Roy exclaimed, his eyes widening.

Krillin turned around grinning with a glint of confidence in his eye. He began to pop his neck in preparation for the fight, never releasing his intrepid smile. "I don't know what you mean. I can barely sense any energy signature. Are you alright, Roy?"

Roy nodded slowly, and sat down on the whistling grass that was blowing steadily in the slight winds.

_What. The. Fuck._

* * *

Golar and Krillin faced each other in their battleground as gusts of modest wind rubbed against them. Krillin stood in his Turtle School fighting stance, prepared for any assault from his opponent. On the opposite side, Golar was confidently positioned, standing upright with his arms crossed over his chest.

"You don't have to do this, Krillin. I sense your strength, but I must warn you; I am more powerful than you can possibly imagine," Golar boldly stated.

Krillin smiled from ear to ear. _This guy can't be serious! He barely has an energy signal._

"Krillin, what the hell? Are you sensing something different than I am?!" Roy inquired from his sitting position on the grass as he raised his hands in annoyance.

The bald monk ignored Roy's query as he smirked at the seemingly overconfident aggressor. Golar seemed unprepared for an attack based off of his lanky stance, and there were openings for a strike in nearly dozens of places.

"You may begin whenever you're ready, Krillin," Golar challenged.

With that, Krillin burst out of his stance and zoomed through the air toward Golar. The warrior from Balotelli remained motionless- or so it seemed. As Krillin screeched as he pulled his arm back for a punch, the warrior chuckled. Krillin struck with all of his might... And nothing happened. His attack went straight through Golar!

The bald fighter turned around in midair as he passed his target, and enlarged his eyes as he realized that he somehow went straight through the armored warrior.

_Alright, what the hell? Let me try this again._

He flung himself toward Golar and attempted a kick to his neck, but yet again, he undoubtedly missed him again! Krillin frowned as he stopped in midair, now facing Golar, who hadn't moved an inch.

"What's the deal, big guy? I thought this was supposed to be a fight!" He screamed, angry that he missed the warrior.

Predictably, Golar did not acknowledge Krillin's inquisition. The former monk growled and flew toward Golar again, and attempted a roundhouse kick to his chest. Yet again... it made no impact, and Krililn was left flying past the armored warrior. He glanced back at Golar as he flew past him, and narrowed his eyes. He would have to attempt something different if he was going to beat Golar.

Krillin turned around and landed in front of the unmoving Golar, nearly fifteen feet away. He grinned at his powerful opposition, and thrust his hands forward as if he were doing a standing bench-press. Slowly, tiny yellow particles were beginning to form in his palms, and his yellow aura increased in size and intensity. Small rocks and clumps of dirt were raised into the air and quickly engulfed by the lightning-colored energy from Krillin as he gnashed his teeth together and grimaced. Golar showed no interest in the display of power, and appeared to be almost bored as he stood still in his ever domineering position.

Krillin smiled once again, but this time, it was because he knew his attack would surprise the pretentious warrior... Or so he hoped.

"Alright Golar, your tricks have worked so far, but let's see you dodge THIS!"

With a loud yell, Krillin released dozens upon dozens of small, golden energy blasts in rapid succession. They whirred through the air with blinding speed, and crashed upon Golar with a turbulent boom. It appeared that each blast exploded on impact, and the resulting effect most likely would cause a massive crater. Still, the smoke from the blast was sitting in the air, refusing to evaporate into the air. Krillin was forced to wait and see the results of his attack. Krillin dropped his hands to his knees and began panting heavily. He turned to Roy and flashed a smile.

"See? I told you I could beat that guy. Luckily I have an extra senzu bean in my pocket; I didn't mean to hurt him that badly."

Roy did not answer. He remained vigilant, staring intently at the smoke, which was now beginning to dissipate. He swallowed and consequently sighed, before turning to Krillin.

"This isn't over yet," he softly muttered.

Krillin furrowed his surprisingly bushy eyebrows and confusedly smiled slightly, turning to Roy. "What are you talking about?"

Roy hesitantly pointed toward the blast site, with its disappearing smoke. Krillin quickly rolled his head around and immediately gasped at the sight. Golar was standing in his same supercilious posture with no injuries whatsoever- not even a scratch on his lustrous armor.

"B-b-but I-I u-used e-everyt-thing in that b-blast..." Krillin stammered, with a squeak of defeat in his voice as he gazed fearfully at his opponent.

"Do not fret Krillin; that was a truly incredible attack. What it lacked in power, it made up for in elegance. I was planning on dodging them like I did with your physical strikes, but I knew that they could not harm me, so I figured I would save the effort and take the bulk of the attack. Now, your attempt was admirable. You are truly a warrior worthy of much praise, my friend," Golar calmly told Krillin.

The armored warrior was correct; the attack did literally nothing to him. Despite the intense crater created beneath Golar, there was no evidence of any sort of assault. His armor was not ravaged, it was perfectly shiny and clean. Krillin clamped his teeth together and frowned. Regardless of his friendship with this new visitor, he did not want to be embarrassed in a battle.

"This... This is not over yet, Golar!" Krillin screamed.

The warrior opposite him chuckled. "Fine with me. I truly admire your persistence, Krillin."

By the time he finished his statement, Krillin was already charging at him. The former monk clenched his right hand into a fist, and threw it at Golar with a furious growl. In a blink of an eye, the armored warrior lifted his left hand and caught the punch with ease. Stunned, Krillin dropped his jaw and blinked several times, but overcame the miniature trance and attempted a kick to Golar's hip, and it connected with a thud... But Golar didn't move. Before Krillin could react to the astonishing situation placed before him, Golar used his free hand to viciously strike Krillin's gut; the tenacious assault sent Krillin flying backward with a wad of blood spraying out of his mouth, as he struggled to remain conscious.

"T-there is n-no way..." A completely aghast Roy mumbled to himself as he viewed the tremendous display of sheer power from Golar, clutching the grass beneath him in awe.

Krillin was dazed and lying on the ground, in a pile of dirt and grass. His gi was mostly covering what appeared to be a large, purple welt. Strands of deep red blood were slowly squirting out of the injured region. It was amazing that a fist could produce such a disturbing abrasion. It appeared as if Golar understood the damage committed, as he swiftly floated through the cool air and landed next to Krillin.

His faceless concealment prevented any emotions to be seen, but by the tapping of his armored boot against the brown grass in the clearing, it was clear that he was at least somewhat concerned. Roy stood up and hustled over to Krillin, passing Golar by without a word. He instantaneously remembered how Krillin previously told him that he had a senzu bean in his pocket, so Roy bent down and snatched it from the pouch.

"Alright, Golar, I don't know what these do, but I suppose they might help... If it doesn't work, you'll need to help me find somewhere to take him... And you need to definitely take it easier next time, your attack was much too harmful..." Roy stated, nervously fidgeting with the small bean.

Golar nodded, not showing any sign of further distress. Roy took his thumb and index finger and pushed open Krillin's mouth; he was barely showing any sign of consciousness.

"So... Am I supposed to just feed him this, or what?" Roy mumbled to himself. He glanced at Golar who shrugged.

"I am unaware of the properties of this bean, but it most likely will heal the organism digesting it with some sort of mystical nature. Possibly regarding stem cells. I am not a medical expert, but I suggest feeding him the bean immediately."

Roy quickly nodded and turned back around to Krillin. His injury was noticeably worse; it appeared that Golar's fist punctured several internal organs in Krillin's stomach, as evident by the multicolored fluid discharging from the wound. It dripped slowly against the dirt and rushed against black foot, and he avoided the puddles by slightly floating in the air. Roy wasn't so lucky, and as he fed Krillin the bean, it pooled around his knees buried in the dirt.

_Dammit Krillin, I don't like having your insides touching me... You better heal from this stupid bean or I will explode and attack Golar, despite his concern..._

Roy and Golar each nervously observed Krillin's healing process. In a few moments, the purple coloring lightened and the swelling was greatly reduced. Slowly, the puncture wounds began to clear up, until finally, his stomach was good as new. Roy smiled and out of his peripheral vision, he noticed Golar nod quickly and let out a sigh of relief as well. He glanced back at Krillin, who was in utter disarray and shock, but laughing lackadaisically.

"Ha-ha-ha, thanks guys! Man Golar, you pack a mean punch! Where the heck did you get all that power?! I bet you're stronger than Frieza!"

The monstrosity simply chuckled at Krillin's statement as he levitated above the duo. "I suppose you do not mind me asking; when is the man called Goku going to arrive?"

Roy shrugged as he looked at Krillin, who sat up in the whistling grass, finally fully recovered. "Who knows. Hopefully soon. But in the meantime, you are welcome to stay on Earth with us. I have a place I can take you that I think you might enjoy, although it will be hard to get you in... But I'm confident that once Chi Chi meets you, she will love to have you as a guest. Roy, let's go; follow me."

Roy's body was reduced to a pile of mush as he seemingly sunk into the ground. Something was not right with Golar. First, he arrives on Earth in an Arcosian ship, then is offered a chance to stay on Earth with Krillin's friends? Despite his lack of experience on the planet, Roy knew that something was very, _very_ wrong.

* * *

**Recommended Stories:  
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"A Tortured Soul" by KaiserNight

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"Break Through the Limit" by Captain Space

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"Cognitive Dissonance" by The Forgotten Phoenix

"Cold World" by jjgp1112

"Dragonball New Beginnings: The Ammit Saga" by KyLewin

"Dragon Ball Z: The Earthling Chronicles" by FinalFlashX

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"To Live Again" by Niteryde

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**Also...**

"The Terror of Mewtwo" by LucifVegeta

"When Worlds Collide" by LucifVegeta and FireStorm1991

DISCLAIMER: Dragon Ball Z AH: The Atrox Saga is a completely non-profit story, made by a fan, for fans. I do not own anything affiliated with Dragon Ball Z.


	5. What's Wrong With Chi-Chi?

Last time, on Dragon Ball Z AH... A mysterious warrior arrived on Earth in an Arcosian ship; he claimed that he killed King Cold, and is searching for Goku to test his power! It seemed Krillin was instantly attracted to this warrior, even after nearly getting killed in a spar with him... Roy is cautious with the warrior, especially after Krillin told him he could stay at the Son home until Goku arrives...

* * *

_**"My Lord, I have encountered several difficulties while sensing the energy signals on Earth. The Saiyan Goku is indeed on his way to the planet... Not only that, but I cannot think of a logical method of persuasion regarding the boy. If he does not come willingly, these other powers will most certainly fight back, and I don't believe I can handle them all, especially with Goku on their side.  
**_

**"What**_** a predicament indeed. For now, do not do anything rash. The only mission I have for you is to make sure that Roy does not leave our sight. I sense a dark power nearing Earth; do all you can to make sure that Roy is NOT harmed."  
**_

_**"Yes, master. This menace will not harm the most important man in the universe; I can assure you that I will do everything in my power to protect him."**_

* * *

Calming waves brushed against the sandy shore of the island and sank into the golden mush. Further upward, seagulls and other birds chirped away, signalling the start of the new day. Inside, Roy squished his nose and squinted his eyes as he stretched his arms back and yawned, letting the sunlight pierce his eyelids. This strange Earthling lifestyle was quite unfamiliar to the young adult; on his old planet, the sun hardly ever shined, and darkness was as prevalent as the flowing water on Earth._**  
**_

Still, things were not right. Ever since Roy met Golar, he had a gut feeling that he was connected to the monstrosity that was searching for him. There was just that ping of doubt, that stirring in his stomach that seemed to scream, "no!" every time he listened. And it was for that reason, that butterfly locked in the steel chamber in his gut, that Roy mentally decreed that he would be keeping a careful eye on Golar.

Despite Roy's naive and young attitude, years of living in panic and confinement molded his growing mind into one of caution and distrust; he balanced this apprehensive attitude with a fearlessness in battle. It seemed as if his inner instinct rose to take control of his body during times of duress, which is precisely why his aptitude for survival was so formidable. Somehow, he knew that he would need it in the future.

It was just last night when he visited the Son home with Krillin. On the way there, the bald man ranted on and on about the woman called Chi-Chi's temperament, and by the time Roy left, he could not even begin to comprehend the events that had occurred...

* * *

_"Now I want you to know, Chi-Chi isn't exactly a gracious host. But trust me Golar, with my convincing, I'm sure she will allow you to stay with her," Krillin confidently stated. _

_The short fighter smiled with glee as he waited for Goku's wife to get the door. Golar stood with his arms folded across his chest behind Krillin, and Roy straightened his training shirt as he glanced toward the window, in which he caught a glimpse of Chi-Chi. From her appearance, she certainly didn't appear to be aggressive. Several moments later, she opened the door and was startled by the site of two strange warriors, one in all black armor, but she quickly regained her composure and smiled kindly at Krillin._

_"Hey Chi-Chi," Krillin greeted with a small smile. _

_"Hello, Krillin! Good to see you; do you have some new friends?" She curiously asked. Her gaze was stamped onto Golar, who returned the favor with a nod.  
_

_"I am honored to meet you, Ma'am. You may call me Golar. I traveled to Earth to meet your husband, but alas, he is not around at this moment; I was wondering if I could take residency in your humble abode while I await your husband's return."  
_

_Krillin and Roy each shuddered thinking of the explosion of fury Chi-Chi would enact after realizing Krillin thought of the idea. They each nervously turned toward the woman, but her reaction was strangely unusual; her left hand, still holding onto the doorknob and keeping the door open, was not clenching the door in rage. Rather, it was dangling lightly, as she looked at Golar up and down, left and right, as if she was attempting to decipher his character._

_Finally, she spoke. "Actually, that sounds really nice. I could use some help around the house, and Gohan could use some help with his homework. After all, being a scholar is tough, especially at his age."_

_"Chi-Chi... You aren't mad?" Krillin sheepishly asked, furrowing his large brow in questioning.  
_

_She instantaneously glared at Krillin and her dark, narrowed eyes punctured his very soul; in other words, she was her usual self.  
_

_"Uh... I mean, ha-ha, you, uh, ha-ha... Oh, never mind," Krillin muttered, dodging her intense gaze._

* * *

Yes, that was the moment that Golar was accepted into Chi-Chi's household. Yes, Golar, the man with black armor and an unknown origin was allowed to live with Goku's wife and child. It was all difficult to register for Roy, but he accepted it with a humble truth; for all he knew, it was customary for Earthlings to allow complete strangers into their habitations.

Amidst his stretching and deep thinking, Roy noticed something on the gray shag carpet underneath his bed; it appeared to be some sort of carrier. He wrinkled his eyebrows as he stared down at the mysterious device. It was blue, with a strange symbol on it that looked like a curved check-mark.

_What the heck is this?  
_  
The cautious creature hopped off of his bed and bent down on his left knee, allowing it to sink into the soft and pleasing underbelly to his bedroom. He grabbed hold of the object and inspected it carefully, turning and twisting it at all directions as he steadily observed the blue and red commodity, tracing his hands over the ridges and combing across several zippers.

After realizing he basically had no idea what the thingamajig was, he shrugged and snatched it up. He carefully jogged down the wooden stairs, clonking them and effectively waking up any sleeping creature in the Kame House.

The confused warrior approached the traditional kitchen, which was more like a nook than an actual kitchen; only a dining table and a small granite island filled with appliances were considered to be parts of the kitchen. Seated at the wooden, long table was Krillin, who was nearly about to make breakfast. He looked up at Roy and smiled.

"Morning, Roy!"

"Hey, Krillin. Say, I found this next to my bed," Roy said, while holding up the object of interest. "Do you know what it is?"

"... That's a backpack, bro..."

"Yeah, remember, I am from a different planet? What the hell is a backpack?"

Krillin's beaming smile slowly straightened out as he looked at Roy. "Well, I guess now is the best time to tell you this..."

Roy rolled his eyes and dropped the backpack to the ground, pursed his lips together, and sighed, releasing a breath of cool air. "Great... What is it, Krillin?"

"Well, heh heh, funny story Roy... Chi-Chi called this morning around 4:00 and told Master Roshi that Golar is forbidding you from leaving... He wouldn't give a reason, only saying that it is urgent that you remain here for the time being. I don't know what his deal is, but Chi-Chi seems to trust him, so I guess I do too. No hard feelings, right? Haha... ha... ha..." The monk said before trailing off and quickly shifting his eyes to the side.

Roy's eyes bulged as he heard the words "Golar is forbidding you from leaving". His face visibly reddened as he trembled with fury, shaking as he stood.

"Are you kidding me, Krillin? Why should I listen to some creep whom we don't even know?"

Krillin flashed a stern glance at Roy to calm him down, and he blinked twice and sat down opposite the bald monk, suppressing his anger and returning to his original, innocent state. "He isn't a creep. I trust him, and so does Chi-Chi. That's good enough for me; what about you?" Krillin implored, although it was a rhetorical quesiton; whether Roy agreed or not, he was staying on Earth.

"I don't like this, but I trust your judgment. You never explained what that backpack thing was for, though... Mind doing that?"

Krillin nodded while speaking. "You are gonna go to high school so it seems like you aren't out of place here. Trust me, it won't be difficult. You don't have to get good grades."

Roy was about to protest, and visibly so, but he quickly backed off and looked down.

_Maybe this is for my own good... After all, I can keep an eye on Golar, and also help protect the Earthlings from any pending threats... I was planning on leaving, but now that I have to stay, I might as well make myself useful..._

"Fine, Krillin. I don't know what this school is, but I agree to your terms," Roy stated, crossing his arms and leaning back in the velvety chair.

* * *

They young half-Saiyan Gohan begrudgingly made his way downstairs. The previous night, he was secretly awake when he heard Golar was allowed to live in the Son household; he was terrified, to say the least. He droned down the final stair, his hair spiked in every direction from a good sleep, and his pajamas of assorted dogs covering his meek and young body. The savory bacon and sausage from the kitchen drew him toward it and the ambrosial, syrupy pancakes contributed as well; the young boy tilted his body to smell more and more until he was nearly in the kitchen. His eyes enlarged and he quickly turned around and bolted out of the area, silently hoping his mother did not catch a glimpse of him.

"Gohan! Get back here! Breakfast is ready!"

The child demi-Saiyan, careful not to disobey his mother, immediately traveled back to the kitchen. His head was arched downward and he timidly approached the table, pattering on the tiled floor.

"Morning, Mom."

"Good morning, Gohan. Before we begin, this is Golar; he is staying here while dad is away!" Chi-Chi eagerly stated, smiling widely.

".. Hello, Sir," he meekly whispered, continuing to avoid all eyes in the room.

The black armored warrior glanced at Chi-Chi and chuckled, and then extended his right hand and placed it atop Gohan's shoulder. The young boy trembled at first, but settled down once Golar gave a few affectionate taps; the boy was not quite at peace, however, evident by his frequent gulps.

"It is not necessary to be nervous around me, my son!" Golar eloquently told Gohan, hoping to calm his nerves. "I sense incredible abilities buried deep within you; what say you to a friendly spar?"

Gohan gave a hopeful glance at his mother; not in hopes that she would agree, but rather in hopes that she would yell at Golar for suggesting such an atrocious waste of time. Unfortunately for him, she didn't seem to care about Golar's request... It was up to Gohan to avoid the fight.

"Uh... I, uh... I have a ton of homework... Maybe some other time..." He mumbled.

Chi-Chi furrowed her brows angrily at the absurd comment and glared daggers into Gohan's inhibited eyes. "Gohan, you can do your homework after. Fighting is important for your growth, you know."

Flabbergasted, the usually shy Saiyan whipped his head upward. "Mom, what are you talking about?!"

Before conflict could ensue, Golar stood up from his chair, and cleared his throat. His booming voice echoed across the room, enough so that Chi-Chi and Gohan both swiveled their eyes to look toward him.

"Come now, Chi-Chi, the boy has a point. Studies help the mind get stronger, which is sometimes just as important as the body. We can always fight tomorrow."

It took several moments, but Chi-Chi nodded approvingly. "Very good point. Gohan, what do you say?"

"T-thank you, Mr. Golar, sir..." he whispered, looking down at the wooden covering on the floor.

"It is not a problem at all, Gohan. Besides, I have some business of my own to deal with. Good luck with your studies. Chi-Chi, I thank you for the meal; I wish I could have eaten it, but it is against my code to remove my armor when others are around. Thank you for your attempts, however."

* * *

A crackling, yellow energy blast whizzed past Vegeta, who narrowly sidestepped to avoid the attack. He quickly twisted in an 180 degree angle, knowing that the blast reflected off of the glass wall of the gravity chamber. He ducked under the electric bomb which nearly skimmed across his large set of hair, and rotated himself back around. Immediately, he was forced to roll to the side to avoid the reflected energy assault, and slammed his fist to the ground in rage.

It was becoming quite explicit to the powerful Saiyan that his gravity training needed a major boost in difficulty; he supposed it was because of his increased power level, and although that excited him, he was furious that he hadn't risen to the level of a Super Saiyan.

Interrupting his thoughts, the ki blast came crashing down next to him. The force of the blast caused a shockwave in the gravity room and shot Vegeta slightly upward. A resounding echo bounced off of the walls until finally, it was over. The Saiyan sneered at himself for being so lackadaisical, and muttered inaudible phrases to himself as he brushed bits and pieces of charred metal off of his drenched body. His blue training tank top was torn in several places, and blood trickled down from areas of injury, causing the shirt to appear more purple than blue.

It was not uncommon for the Saiyan to train in excruciatingly difficult conditions and dominate the sessions; his body had adapted to over 400x gravity. What really made him tick was the knowledge that Goku only trained at 100x gravity, and yet, somehow, HE was the Super Saiyan.

_Damn you, Kakarot! Why must you torment me so... You have taken control of my innermost thoughts, and rendered my fighting prowess useless. Well... That will all change soon enough. I can feel this extraordinary power on its burst point; you will not be ahead of me for long.  
_  
Vegeta entered the compound like he had so many times in the past, and sauntered up to his room. The heat and steam of his shower was drawing him in, but he was distracted when he passed the blue-haired beauty, Bulma. He grunted at her and frowned as she smiled at him, and right when they crossed each others paths, she stopped and swiveled to look at him.

"Vegeta, I don't want to bother you so I am only going to ask you this once, but Yamcha is coming over tonight. Please don't embarrass me or make fun of him, because I know its tempting for you to do so," she commanded in as forceful a tone as she could muster.

With his back still facing her, he scoffed at her statement. "Please! That weakling would never understand my Saiyan wit. And don't flatter yourself, woman. I would never stoop so low to interact with you two idiots tonight."

Bulma frowned largely and narrowed her eyes, still staring at the back of the arrogant Saiyan. "I'm glad you wouldn't 'stoop so low' because we don't want you there anyways!"

Vegeta growled and rotated himself around, and then crossed his arms against his bloodied chest. "I understand, woman. Now, please leave me so I can shower in peace; unless you would like to watch," he suavely suggested.

After noticing a ghost of a smirk on Vegeta's face, Bulma calmed down and forced herself not to smile at his strange charm. "No, I wouldn't; don't flatter yourself. Just because you are a prince, does not make you attractive!"

With that, she stormed off and down the hallway before heading down the stairs. Vegeta smirk grew larger until he shook his head and chuckled. His dark eyes followed her movements down the hallway, and finally, he entered his bedroom to take a needed shower.

* * *

A/N: Filler for the win! Lol, not really, but oh well. These scenes had to be done for character development purposes, as well as increasing the time before a certain event happens... Anyways, thanks to EVERYONE for reading, and PLEASE REVIEW!

**Recommended Stories:  
**  
"A Tortured Soul" by KaiserNight

"Appule's Insurrection" by Pointer39

"Art of Survival" by Niteryde

"Break Through the Limit" by Captain Space

"Bringer of Death" by Npberryhill

"Cognitive Dissonance" by The Forgotten Phoenix

"Cold World" by jjgp1112

"Dragonball New Beginnings: The Ammit Saga" by KyLewin

"Dragon Ball Z: The Earthling Chronicles" by FinalFlashX

"Frozen Memories" by FireStorm1991

"Guardian" by Super Vegetarott

"In the Shadows" by Niteryde

"Justice Enforcer" by KaiserNight

"Kageto: The Saiyan Supreme and the Fate Protectors" by Kagetoworld

"To Live Again" by Niteryde

"Point of No Return" by Niteryde

"Rediscovering Honor" by LPphreek

"Saiyan Rising" by EFJRAD

"Second Chance" by Full Power

"Side Story- Sibling Ties" by FireStorm1991

"Sins of the Father" by Super Vegetarott

"The Yamucha Chronicle" by DoraMouse

"Zarbon's Rebellion" by FinalFlashX

**Also...**

"The Terror of Mewtwo" by LucifVegeta

"When Worlds Collide" by LucifVegeta and FireStorm1991

DISCLAIMER: Dragon Ball Z AH: The Atrox Saga is a completely non-profit story, made by a fan, for fans. I do not own anything affiliated with Dragon Ball Z.


	6. High School Drags

Last time, on Dragon Ball Z... Golar moved in with a surprisingly unreluctant Chi-Chi, and Roy was forced to attend school as a coverup.

* * *

Roy contracted his chest outward and breathed deeply inward, attempting to calm his nerves. It was his first day of this thing called "school", and he was unprepared, worried, and anxious. He did not know why his nerves were acting out, because this guise was only as a cover so he could discern the truths of Golar's purpose on Earth. Warm winds brushed against his bare skin, as well as the shoulders of several dozens of students hastily approaching the school. Roy was stationed out front, admiring the massive size of the building.

He wore his usual red tank top and black shorts, the perfect clothing for such a day; heat was the main feature of the weather. Finally, snapping out of his miniature trance, Roy decided to brave the storm and enter the school. He plodded slowly to the entrance, and finally, carefully grabbed hold of the doorknob and pushed it open with one finger; he did not wish to show off his truly incredible strength, especially not on the first day of school!

Directly in front of him was a set of double-doors, and there was a small, metallic sign off to the right that said, "main office". Roy assumed that was where he needed to go, and strolled in. To the right and left of each door were several white, leather chairs. Ahead of Roy was a black office desk littered with mugs, pencils, papers, and more. Behind the desk was a quite large and unattractive woman. Adding to her many layers of fat was a deep frown seemingly plastered on her face; to further that, her face was wrinkled and had ridges that made her look like a canyon. Her small, brown eyes were encased in spherical glasses, and her messy and short hair gave the impression that she just woke up.

Right behind her were two posters, one black, and one white. The left on said, "White Star High School", and the right one said, "The place for an invasion- an invasion of learning!". Roy thoroughly inspected them, curiously wondering about the strange motto, when he heard the woman behind the desk clear her throat. He blinked several times and looked down at her with a compassionate smile to try and get things going on the right foot.

However, the secretary did not have the same intentions.

"Yes?" She mumbled in a dull monotone.

"Uh... Hi, I, uh... I'm a new student here," Roy orated.

"Full name?" She asked, swiveling her chair to her computer. She grabbed hold of the mouse and awaited his answer without glancing at him.

Roy swallowed and then stammered, "Uh, uh, uh, um... Roy, uh..."

_Shit, I never thought of a last name! Oh God..._

"Uh, Roy Roshi."

The secretary made no acknowledgment on the struggles of Roy, and typed away at the computer at a quick pace. After clacking the keyboard for several seconds, she looked at Roy. The warrior attempted to hold his gaze on her, but was struggling mightily. Not only because of her disgusting appearance, but also because he knew that she found out he was lying...

"There is no Roy Roshi. Are you Roy Gannon? We are expecting him," she dully muttered.

Roy nodded happily and let out a sigh of release. It appeared either Krillin, Bulma, Golar, or Chi-Chi had sent the school his application with the last name, "Gannon".

"Yeah, that's me. Thanks."

The secretary across Roy rolled her eyes and handed him a yellow piece of paper. It detailed his classes, including his first hour. He gave a slight wave at the abhorrent beast before leaving the office in a flash.

_Alright, let's see here. First hour, weights. Well, dammit! I have no clue how strong the average Earthling is. Hopefully I can sense their power levels._

Roy tracked the room number from his schedule to a room in the basement; it was secluded, which made power levels easier to sense. He turned into a stairwell at the left end of the school, and reached the basement. It was tiled with white flooring, and at each side doors populated the walls. On the left was the gymnasium, or at least the main one; down the hall, there were several others gyms as well. At the very end of the hall, it curved to the left, and the schedule told Roy that was where he needed to go.

As he came to a halt at the end of the passage, he saw a large horde of students making their way out of some sort of fitness room. They were all sweating, so Roy assumed it was a warmup. At the end of the parade, a short and very well-built old man came strutting out. He was wearing a White Star High School t-shirt and black shorts, and was completely bald, save a handlebar mustache. Roy gave a slight wave, assuming he was the weights coach, and he smiled back.

"Hey! You must be Roy. I'm Coach Fitz. The kids are just gonna max out today so I can see where we're at; why don't you a pick a partner to spot you. Follow me to the weight room."

Roy nodded and followed the stocky man down the corridor. It smelled vaguely of sweat and metal; not exactly ideal, but it represented the fact that the students worked hard. Finally, at the end of the hallway, they turned right and into the weight room. Students were already testing out; the core lifts were supposed to be done first, so everybody was either on a bench preparing for bench press, or on a wooden panel preparing for hang cleans.

The weight room itself reeked of hard work, efficiency, and fanciful equipment. Lining the northern and eastern walls were stations equipped for bench press, incline press, and squats, and behind them, mirrors so the lifters could see themselves while squatting. The western wall had no mirrors, but rather solid concrete. In front of the concrete were many machines, equipped for back, abdominal, shoulder, and neck exercises. The southern wall held an office, and to the right of it, a dumbbell area.

Of course, the central part of the room had the clean stations as well as leg machines. Overall, a very well-setup lifting room. However, one drastic problem remained; the highest person in the room had a power level of eight. Roy could lift circles around everyone in the room combined. Amidst his slightly timorous thoughts, Roy felt a faint tap on his shoulder. He glanced over, his jaw unintentionally agape, and saw a small, skeletal boy.

"Will you spot me on bench, bro?" He asked Roy.

The warrior could barely contain his laughter. The measly child with a power level of one wanted to lift with him! Certainly a difference in strength.

"Uh, sure, kid," Roy chuckled, as he pursed his lips to hold in the laughter attempting to escape the threshold of his mouth.

The kid slid onto a black bench, and Roy promptly stood behind it, preparing to add the necessary weights.

"Put on a ten", the kid told Roy, while stretching his arms as he lay on the bench.

Unfortunately for him, Roy did not know the concept of pounds. He was from a different planet after all; it was almost guaranteed that they had a different measuring system. Roy fumbled about with several weights, and attempted to gauge how heavy each one was. It was difficult because none of the weights felt like anything to him, so he guessed and put on two random plates.

"Alright kid, you're good to go," Roy calmly stated.

The boy in front of him grabbed the bar in the proper position, and drummed his tiny fingers against it while stomping his feet. He was prepared to lift the sixty-five pounds and break his record! So, he tried, and... Failed to get the bar off of the stopper. He looked back, stunned, and then growled before flipping himself around to look at Roy.

"What the fuck, man?! You put on thirty-fives! This is one-hundred and fifteen pounds, not sixty-five!"

Roy sheepishly looked around to see if anyone noticed, and luckily, nobody did.

_Ugh, this is gonna be a long day..._

* * *

Roy was incorrect literally about the day being long, but figuratively, he was completely prophetic. In weights class, he benched 800 pounds, thinking it was most likely easy for most of the Earthlings. Unfortunately, not only did they watch him in awe, but he used too much force and the bar snapped in half like a twig. Coach Fitz told the class it must have been a faulty bar, but nobody believed him. All it did was solidify that fact that Roy was a freak; nobody could be friends with a freak.

Roy solemnly trudged up the staircases and headed to his next class, which was geometry. It was on the top floor, which required three climbs up different sets of stairs. To make matters worse, it was filled with either freshmen or unintelligent seniors. Adding to the horrendous experience in weights class, and Roy was certainly not excited about his next class.

He barely slid through the doorway before the two-minute bell rang, signaling the time to start to head to class. As he walked in the dreary classroom, he noticed his name written on the white board.

_Strange, this appears to be some sort of complex seating arrangement. I better go find my seat.  
_  
It appeared that Roy was stationed in the back left corner. The way the desks were set up, their were pairs of two small desks next to each other before a walkway, and then another group of two, and so on. After Roy squeezed into the tiny opening between chair and desk, the waves of mindless students started pouring in. Paying attention to them, Roy noticed one thing; high school Earth girls were very attractive. Fearing the worst because of his inexperience with speaking to high school girls, Roy sulked in his seat and put his head down in a niche between forearm and bicep, and wished the day would be over.

Unfortunately for him, it certainly was not over, and he figured that out when he felt a tap on his shoulder. He groaned slightly and took a deep breath as he lifted his head from his shoulders, but his eyes were quickly reduced to piles of mush as he stared at the beautiful sight sitting next to him. She was incredibly beautiful, with glistening blonde hair slightly longer than shoulder-length, enticing blue eyes, and tanned, perfect skin.

She smiled at Roy and looked him straight in the eye; something about her seemed seductive, and Roy was certainly feeling the effects as he cowered into his seat.

"H-hey t-there..." Roy stammered, enamored with her physical beauty. He was he instantly attracted toward her beautiful face, but her more intimate features were drawing him in even more, and his eyes were glued. In the situation, he possibly drooled a little, but wouldn't let the author write that because of pure embarrassment.

"Hey, are you Roy?" She asked, smirking at his obvious apprehension.

He opened his mouth to respond, and shifted his position in his chair, crossing his right leg over his left leg.

"Y-yeah. I'm Roy," he stuttered, now avoiding all eyes as he glanced to the side of her attractive face.

"Well... I'm Ashley," she said, moving several strands of her golden, ravishing hair behind her ear. "And I'm having a huge party tomorrow night; wanna come? I live on 1135 West Street, in South City."

Roy was completely aghast at the entire situation. Not only was this extraordinarily sexy girl inviting him to a party, but he was acting like a scared little child! Roy Gannon, the ultra powerful warrior who spent years avoiding a monster and his minions, was scared of a teenage girl on Earth, the planet that he had been on for only a few days.

All Roy could do was nod and force a smile at the beautiful young woman because the teacher began to speak in front of the class. Instead of taking notes like she instructed, Roy simply sat and stared into space, careful not to look at Ashley for too long at a time.

_Alright, what the hell am I gonna do? I don't want to have NO friends at this godforsaken place, so I need to go to this party, but I have no clue what a party even is on Earth! Ugh... Wait... Wait a second! I bet Krillin will take me! I bet he's great with human girls!_

* * *

Deep in the mountain range of the Odjin Mountains, the aftereffects of a tremendous blizzard were being felt. Snow piled across the range in heaps, usually exceeding one foot in length. The blustering winds did not help matters as wisps of powdery, white snow floated across the ravines and consequently landed onto the plethora of spruce trees, spreading the storm across miles of land.

One of the forests in the Odjin Mountains was called the Gugan Forest, which was known for its generous clearings and its substantial amount of spruce trees; it was here that the three-eyed warrior, Tien, and his tiny, childish friend, Chiaotzu, trained.

Tien was located in one of those clearings, floating in the air in an Indian-style position, and meditating. He was dressed in his typical green gi with his yellow boots, although he was covered in a brown, plaid jacket to protect himself from the harsh environment. After all, it was less than 10 degrees in the Gugan Forest, and despite his incredible abilities, he could not influence his body temperature without exerting energy; consequently, if he exerted energy, he would cause himself to lose focus and ruin the meditation.

The warrior hovered slightly, forcefully meditating and calming himself from a day of training. Chiaotzu was searching for firewood to build a fire, because Tien did not trust his pupil's ability to create one without the catalyst of wood.

The freezing temperatures and savage winds did little to break his concentration, but something else did; Tien's eyes snapped open and he quickly landed to the ground. There was a very unusual power landing on Earth, and it was landing in the Gugan Forest...

_What... Is this power? It... It can't be Goku! I've never felt something so strange before... Not since... Nappa... _

Tien widened his eyes at the mere thought of an enemy landing on Earth; whoever it was, he exceeded the three-eyed warrior in power by a substantial margin. Regardless... Chiaotzu was in grave danger. The warrior burst out of his stance and flew to where the power was located, not stopping once to reconsider his decision. He gnashed his teeth together as he flew faster than he had ever flown before; he would not let Chiaotzu get hurt again! He couldn't!

Seconds flew by and Tien finally stopped, and dropped to the floor below him. "Chiaotzu... Chiaotzu, PLEASE answer me!" He cried out, but it was in vain.

He swiveled his head in each direction, searching for any signs of the small warrior; the only thing he found was an empty space pod. It was spherical, but a deep blue, and it was surrounded by strange symbols; whatever it was, it was not a Saiyan pod.

The three-eyed warrior crept over to the ship and dropped on one knee to inspect it. His knees buckled under the stress, but he traced his hand around the symbols to attempt and find an opening regardless. After wiping some of the excess snow off of the pod, there was a small, red button in between several symbols. Tien pressed it carefully, and the pod sprung open; nothing came out.

Tien grimaced in fear and narrowed his eyes; the beast was in the forest... And so was Chiaotzu. He stood back up and breathed in, but the stress was already taking its toll on the warrior like a slow knife. Chiaotzu's life force was unable to be located, and emotions were clouding his mind and his vision. Still, the warrior did not give up hope; he started plodding as quickly as he could through the deep snow, and searching for any signs of his friend.

"Looking for someone?! Ba-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha!"

Tien snarled in rage and whipped himself around to see the monstrosity behind the menacing voice. In the shadows, hiding within the treeline, Tien could make out a silhouette; the silhouette had his right arm extended downward, grasping onto something, something that resembled a shirt, and that shirt was connected... To a small creature.

The three-eyed warrior curled his lip upward in rage as his heart started to pump blood at an astronomical rate; his breathing became heavier, and his eyebrows were furrowed until the pressure gave him a headache. Immediately, Tien heard a laugh as the creature swiftly stepped out of the darkness; Tien was right. He was holding a very limp Chiaotzu in his hand. The small warrior gave no signs of being conscious, as his mouth was opened slightly and his eyes were enclosed beneath his eyelids.

"Chiaotzu..." Tien muttered shakily. His intense eyes instantly shifted to the monster's, and seemingly seared into his brain from the sheer fire behind them; Tien was furious.

Yet, the creature didn't seem to mind. He was very large at nearly seven feet tall, and bulky; he wore black armor, similar to a PTO soldier's. His skin was scaly and a deep blue, with claws for hands. He had a green mohawk with dozens of fangs lining his mouth as he smirked, and his beady, black eyes stared back at Tien's.

"You shouldn't have your friend here go out alone... It could be dangerous!" He sarcastically chuckled.

* * *

A/N: YAY! The first sign of real action! Please read on and review!

**Recommended Stories:  
**  
"A Tortured Soul" by KaiserNight

"Appule's Insurrection" by Pointer39

"Art of Survival" by Niteryde

"Break Through the Limit" by Captain Space

"Bringer of Death" by Npberryhill

"Cognitive Dissonance" by The Forgotten Phoenix

"Cold World" by jjgp1112

"Dragonball New Beginnings: The Ammit Saga" by KyLewin

"Dragon Ball Z: The Earthling Chronicles" by FinalFlashX

"Frozen Memories" by FireStorm1991

"Guardian" by Super Vegetarott

"In the Shadows" by Niteryde

"Justice Enforcer" by KaiserNight

"Kageto: The Saiyan Supreme and the Fate Protectors" by Kagetoworld

"To Live Again" by Niteryde

"Point of No Return" by Niteryde

"Rediscovering Honor" by LPphreek

"Saiyan Rising" by EFJRAD

"Second Chance" by Full Power

"Side Story- Sibling Ties" by FireStorm1991

"Sins of the Father" by Super Vegetarott

"The Yamucha Chronicle" by DoraMouse

"Zarbon's Rebellion" by FinalFlashX

**Also...**

"The Terror of Mewtwo" by LucifVegeta

"When Worlds Collide" by LucifVegeta and FireStorm1991

DISCLAIMER: Dragon Ball Z AH: The Atrox Saga is a completely non-profit story, made by a fan, for fans. I do not own anything affiliated with Dragon Ball Z.


	7. The Death of a Z Fighter

Last time, on Dragon Ball Z... Roy "enjoyed" his first day of school on Earth, and even got invited to a party (what the hell is a party? Roy doesn't know). Tien sensed a strange power, and found an enemy holding an unconscious Chiaotzu...

* * *

_**"My Master, Goku has not yet returned to Earth. However, someone has. I am sensing that this creature is directly related to the Demented Army of Atrox."**_

_**"What?! How dare that fool Atrox interfere with my plans! Make sure that Roy is not killed. Do what must be done. Protect the Earth."  
**_

_**"Yes, it will be done, Master."**_

* * *

Anger. Rage. Fury. Hate. Sadness. Tien's brain was being flooded with emotional tornadoes, nearly severing his connection to sanity. In front of him lie his best friend, unconscious and defenseless, in the hands of a monstrosity. The three-eyed warrior, ever since his days in the Crane School, owed it to Chiaotzu to protect him. And that was precisely what he was going to do. His rooted scowl was uncontrollable and his intense stare flung daggers in the eyes of his opposition, but the savage behemoth in front of him held no fear. He simply stood confidently and smirked deviously at the three-eyed warrior, his tiny fangs glinting from the white snow. He held Chiaotzu like a mere toy, something that made Tien increasingly angry.

"Let... Him... Go..." Tien stammered, continuing his fit of rage.

The blue alien's smirk grew wider, until finally, he was in an all-out laugh. "BA-HA-HA-HA-HA-HA-HA! It appears you care for this little insect!"

"If you don't let him go right now, I swear to you that this will be the last day of your life!" Tien screamed as his energy aura increased, surrounding him with pure blue energy, and disintegrating the small rocks near his feet.

The creature sneered at Tien's display of rage, and bit into his front lip; his fangs would have pierced regular skin, but his scaly exoskeleton protected him from such meager blades.

"My master was completely correct when he told me the Earthlings were pathetic little insects. Tell me, you miserable bug... Do you see yourself as tasked with protecting others, with holding up the gates of hell so no excess flames will harm the unprotected?"

"I don't see myself doing it, I FEEL myself doing it... I may have failed before, but I have never backed down from a challenge! And you may be strong, but I have faced more powerful warriors than you twenty times over!" Tien screeched.

The opposing alien smirked. "Quite a predicament; While your job is to protect these paltry rodents, mine is to crush them under my boot," he hissed. He stroked Chiaotzu's face with his claws and smirked while narrowing his tiny, speckled eyes at Tien's stunned face. "And while you have failed before, I have never let the lord down."

"Argh... Alright, I've had enough of this!" Tien exclaimed.

He grabbed the collar of his plaid coat and flung it over his head and off of his body, revealing his classic green gi. "If you don't let him go this instant, I swear I will kill you!"

The alien licked his scaly and chapped, blue lips. "I told you I had never failed before. If you were listening you could have saved this worthless oaf, but I suppose you were blinded by your foolish courage and honor! For this, you will now pay the ultimate consequence."

Before Tien could react, the colossal monster clamped his left claw over Chiaotzu's bald head, and rotated it quickly to the right; a sickening crunch and whimper ended the motion, and simultaneously, Chiaotzu's life.

The scene hit Tien harder than a freight train; the three-eyed warrior forced his eyes shut as he trembled in anger and he clenched his fists together. A single tear rolled down his cheek; Chiaotzu's killer found that to be increasingly comedic.

"AH-HA-HA-HA-HA-HA-HA-HA-HA-HA-HA-HA! This is truly ingenious! Who would have thought that the Earthling warrior would begin to cry! And just imagine... You COULD have saved this little ragdoll, but you DIDN'T!" He screamed.

"ARGH! STOP THIS! How... How could y-you do something like this? Chiaotzu was innocent; he was NO threat to you!" Tien shrieked, instantly powering up to full power. A blue aura of incredible energy erupted from Tien's tense body, swirling piles of snow and dirt all around him.

The blue alien flung Chiaotzu aside, and his limp, lifeless body landed in the nearby treeline. The smug alien smirked wryly as he crossed his arms over his armored chest.

"While he posed no immediate threat to me, my master adamantly stated that I was tasked with... _eliminating_ the pathetic Earthling populace. My strength alone is more than enough to do so, wouldn't you say?"

The vocal audacity of the anonymous alien would have usually enraged Tien, but his words had no meaning to the three-eyed warrior any longer. He was distraught, completely unable to accept Chiaotzu's death; After all, it had only been several years since his last revival. The childlike emperor was seemingly a death magnet, and Tien could never protect him from the harm that followed him.

The strong-willed fighter collapsed to the moistened ground, falling onto one knee and dangling his right hand over it. His energy was sporadic and uncontrollable; small bursts of cerulean energy shook the pure, white ground with random vigor, causing puffs of snow and shards of ice to rocket upward and outward.

_Chiaotzu... No, not again! Not again! I-I can't believe I failed you again... I'm sorry buddy..._

"How perplexing. You actually seem saddened that the ragdoll is dead... Strange. To make it easier on you, I guess you should know that every other one of your friends will be dead as well! You can all be together up above; My master foresees it," hissed the blue alien.

Tien's head shot upward and his fiery pupils stared into the beady eyes of the alien. "You won't hurt another soul, you monster! I promise you this; I will end you here, and now!"

The three-eyed warrior exploded from his kneeling position, catching the monstrous alien by surprise.

_Chiaotzu, I swear to you that you will be avenged! This is what I have been prepping for all of my life: the chance to protect my friends from harm. And while I may have failed to save you, I promise that your death will not be in vain! Nobody will have to suffer from this beast, I can assure you that! And... And if it means sacrificing myself... I won't hesitate to do it._

The creature was not prepared for such a full-on assault, and dropped into his stance one second too late as Tien hit him with a vicious roundhouse kick to the temple, sending him pummeling through a boulder and into the treeline. The three-eyed warrior dropped immediately to the ground and extended his right arm fully, pointing at the downed alien. He retracted each finger except for his pointer and middle finger, and slowly, a tiny sphere of golden energy formed. Grinding his teeth together, Tien trembled slightly, nearing the release of his trademark Dodon Ray.

Through the shadows of the treeline, the three-eyed warrior noticed a figure moving; it was now or never. "DODON RAY!" Tien screamed, the golden energy pouring outward in front of him and heading straight for the alien. In mere milliseconds, it exploded in the forest, causing thick wisps of smoke to pile onto what Tien hoped to be the dead alien.

But of course, that was not the case.

The sound of devilish giggles filled the ears of the Earthling, and he involuntarily began to shudder; the mere thought of the reptilian warrior being alive caused fear to ache throughout the pit of his stomach, and he grated his teeth together in response.

"You really need to increase your power, Earthling. I was able to completely withstand that mediocre blast," he hissed, grinning from nonexistent ear to nonexistent ear as he floated out of the forest and back into the clearing.

"You may have avoided my Dodon Ray, but I'm far from finished," Tien declared.

He buried his feet within the snow and then promptly exited it, flying into the cold air and dashing toward the alien. The blue creature dropped into his fighting stance and as Tien began his assault, easily knocked his fist to the side. Tien came back with a jump kick to the alien's chest, but he tilted his body to the left, and was easily able to avoid it. The three-eyed warrior was shocked at the speed and efficiency the alien carried; it was almost too powerful to comprehend for his inexperience.

Tien narrowed his eyes and phased out of his position and appeared behind the alien, but he saw it coming and ducked under the fist Tien threw. In response, the blue monster flung his elbow backwards, burying into Tien's abdominal region and causing him to double over in severe pain. As Tien heaved at the ground to attempt to gather his composure, the alien spun toward him and socked him in the neck with his clawed foot, sending him skidding across the ground and into the forest.

"Where do you think you're going?!" He wailed, as he flew after him into the clearing. Before he reached it, Tien phased away from his original area. Rather annoyed at the Earthling's foolish tactics, the strange creature folded his arms over his armored chest and sneered at the Earth warrior. "I was under the impression you wanted to fight me like a man, not an insect!"

"That's what you're missing, you fool; while you are standing, clueless, and in the open, I am preparing for a method of taking you down!" Tien retorted.

The scaly beast turned to look at where he heard the laughable comment, but he quickly realized Tien was playing tricks on him; he smirked as he heard his aura nearing him, and whipped himself around to face Tien. The three-eyed warrior was initially shocked, but quickly regained his focus as he charged in with a kick to the alien's kneecap. The reptilian monster jumped backward slightly to avoid the kick, and was prepared for Tien's next attack as well, which was a punch to the face; he tilted his head to the left with a devious smirk.

"Do you see now why your race is doomed? You cannot even touch me!" The blue-skinned freak screeched, while blocking Tien's oncoming fist with his forearm. "And to prove a point... Behold!"

Tien's eyes slightly widened and he flipped backwards in preparation for the inevitable assault, landing softly in the snow. The warrior of Earth immediately eyed his opposition, and to his distaste, he was completely gone! Tien frantically rotated his head around, attempting to locate his missing opponent, when suddenly an elbow came crashing into the small of his back; the accompanying thud and crack sent Tien painfully pummeling face-first into the fluffed ground, creating a cloud of dirt and snow.

The Earthling clenched his fists and raised his back to sit up, hesitatingly eying his surroundings. He glanced to the left; nothing was there. He whipped his head to the right, and predictably, nothing was there... It seemed the alien was somehow concealing his energy signal...

"Behind you!"

Tien quickly spun around, wide-eyed, but only in time to see a blue, clawed foot flying at him; it successfully landed on his scarred chest, and the force of impact sent him rocketing backwards and into a familiar spherical object...

The reptilian creature phased back into reality as Tien collided with his ship, immediately destroying it in a burst of flames. His smug look turned into one of pure rage; his dotted, black eyes stared menacingly at the injured body of Tien, which was completely covered from charred rubble. The slight burning feeling did not help Tien recover from his intense chest pain that seemingly made his ribcage throb in agony; the three-eyed warrior struggled to move as he forced his body to arch upward while pain shot through his torso. It was hard to imagine that so few blows caused so much damage to Tien.

The scaled alien barely noticed Tien's struggles, as he realized the true effects of his ship's destruction; he could never leave Earth. He snarled and darted his eyes toward Tien, who had managed to stand, albeit in an unbalanced and awkward position.

"YOU! Y-you destroyed my ship! You will pay for your transgressions, Earthling!" He screamed, with streams of green spit escaping his mouth.

Before Tien could react, the alien charged at him with unbelievable speed, bursting through the frosty air. He growled as he dug his fist into Tien's gut; the warrior of Earth arched his back in an instinctual reaction, coughed up mounds of blood, changing the pure snow into a disgusting red shade. Tien's torturous bout was not finished, however, as his opponent took advantage of Tien's lack of focus and struck his chin with a vicious left uppercut. The three-eyed Earthling was sent flying into the air, gnashing his teeth and forcing his eyes shut in tremendous pain. Tien's reptilian opposition smirked as he emerged above the skyrocketing warrior; he cupped his claws above his head, and smashed the warrior downward.

Tien plunged to the Earth, but he barely noticed his fall. His head was pounding, his ears were ringing, his eyes were fogged... He was in dreadful shape. His rather unfortunate landing had the impact of a small bomb; his flailing body impinged the solid ground, creating a slight crater. The resulting effects jettisoned heaps of snow, creating a miniature tornado that swirled around his sprawled body, and protected him from being observed from above. Still, the scaly alien curled the corners of his lips upward in high admiration of his assault as he floated nearly forty feet above the crater. He crossed his arms with contentment, allowing his fallen adversary the time to recover. Despite his mission, the anonymous warrior enjoyed playing with his opponents before killing them; it provided him with a little more entertainment.

"Are you alright down there? I think I may have hit you a little too hard! It gets difficult preserving the lives of insects with such an unreachable power!" He exclaimed, nearly bursting into a fit of laughter at his rather poor sense of humor.

Despite the cacophonous ringing piercing his eardrums, Tien began to control his body and focus. His eyes cleared up and he was able to see; fortunately for him, the wall of snow hovering in the air was thick enough for him to crawl out of the crater without being seen. He prayed silently that it would last as he pulled every aching muscle in his body forward, attempting to keep pressure off of his fragmented rib cage and wounded spine. Digging his hands into the heavy snow, he slowly pulled himself forward and forward, staying under the concealment that his cascade created.

_Ugh, this is maddening... I can't give up now, there has to be a way to stop him! But... How? He is much more powerful than anyone I have ever faced... _

Amidst his thoughts, he remembered his earlier attempts at defeating the monstrosity, and how he was unable to sense Tien's energy when he phased away from the battle. A light bulb flashed in the innermost parts of his brain, and in between crawls, he lifted his left fist and clenched it together, forcing a grin with his innovative idea.

He was going to win this heated (rather, frozen) battle with the element of surprise.

* * *

Roy barged into the front door of the Kame House, and promptly slammed it shut behind him. The resulting tremor awoke a sleeping Oolong with a startle, and he jolted up into the air.

"Watch where you're slammin' doors, Roy!" Oolong exclaimed as he plopped back down on the couch.

Roy attempted to hide his smirk as he glanced toward the frightened pig, Oolong. "Sorry, buddy. Hey, have you seen Krillin? I really need to talk with him about something."

The talkative pig frowned and muttered something to himself while pointing toward the back door. "He's outside. Just don't slam any doors when you get back! I need my beauty sleep!"

With a slight nod and wave, the warrior of Earth jogged toward the back door, and quickly exited. Outside, Krillin stood facing the flowing ocean water. The light tides bounced off of his bare feet and continued back to the ocean, only to repeat again; it was an endless cycle. Krillin's eyes were distant, staring blankly into the depths of the sea. Roy slowly approached him in the silence. The sloshing beneath his feet momentarily distracted him, but he continued on.

"Krillin? You okay?" Roy asked quizzically, nearing his friend.

The bald monk turned around with narrowed eyes. "I don't know... I am tracking some strange energy signals near Tien... He is one of my friends, and I hope he's all right."

Roy nodded and closed his eyes, searching out for the energy Krillin was worried about. It was quite apparent that a tremendous power was battling against a power rivaling that of Krillin's; in other words, a monumental mismatch.

"I don't know; I feel it too, but it could be a training exercise," Roy stated, shrugging.

Krillin smiled at Roy and nodded. "Always the optimist, huh? Well, I suppose you're correct. Anyways, you need anything else?"

The taller warrior glanced to the side and bobbed his head several times. "Well, yeah, I actually do. You see, there's this girl..."

Krillin glared at Roy as he interrupted his request. "Woah, woah, woah... Whoever put you up to this, it isn't funny!"

"What are you talking about..?" Roy replied casually, raising his left eyebrow.

The bald monk folded his arms over his orange gi and sneered at Roy's naivety. "Don't even try to pretend that pig Oolong didn't set you up for this!"

"I really don't know what you're talking about; I need your help, Krillin!"

* * *

Tien had successfully crawled his way behind a snow-covered boulder; the massive size cloaked the battered warrior from exposure to the scumbag's view. Currently, he was relaxing smugly in the crisp skies, not even bothering to search for Tien in the rubble. He was waiting for the swirling piles of snow to subside, and little did he know, that he was much too late.

The three-eyed fighter leaned backward until he felt the rocky substance chill his injured back. He grimaced in pain, but he relished in the opportunity to rest his body. His chest had a nasty blue and black bruise covering the center of his ribcage. It was amazing that so few attacks could cause such damage to the hardened warrior, but it only showed the incredible power the strange alien carried. Tien wondered what his true purpose for coming to Earth was, and who he was working for, but obviously he was in no condition to have a friendly chat with him!

The Earthling glanced at the crater and noticed the veil of snow dissipating slowly; his strategy needed to be used as soon as possible. If the alien realized he wasn't in the crater, it would be too late for the three-eyed warrior...

He clenched his fists together and clamped his teeth together, forcibly struggling to maintain control of his energy. The process of splitting your energy in specific increments and using it to create multiple bodies was painstakingly difficult and required more concentration than nearly any other technique. To add to that, Tien forced himself to hold in any noise so that he could not be detected; it all rode on his willpower to succeed.

Straining all of the muscles in his body, it began to split apart. Slowly, body parts began duplicating in thin air, materializing in front and behind him with equal proportion. With a silent growl and push, he now had two exact duplicates of himself. Because Tien had already thought of his plan, all three copies knew exactly what they were tasked with doing.

"Alright guys, let's end this," Tien number one whispered. His associates nodded in response.

* * *

"Yeah... SURE, Oolong didn't tell you to ask me something about a girl. I COMPLETELY believe you!" Krillin sarcastically stated, still observing Roy in order to decipher the truth behind his words.

Roy rolled his eyes and stroked his scalp by ruffling his spiked hair. He wasn't going to reach Krillin by asking him what he was referring to.

"Okay, I met this girl today and she asked me to go to her party... But obviously, I don't know what to do! I was wondering if you could help me, and I swear I am being legitimate," he declared.

The bald monk settled down after hearing Roy's proposition. It appeared he was being truthful, which meant he could mask his inefficiencies with girls... In a BIG way. He smiled at Roy and nodded.

"Sure, I'll even go with you! When is it? You can follow my lead," Krillin offered slyly, a glint in his eye.

Roy grinned. "Thanks man! It's tomorrow night. Think I can handle it?"

Krillin chuckled and strolled closer to Roy; the bald monk extended his left hand and patted on Roy's broad shoulder with a mischievous smile. "Of course you can! Especially with me by your side."

* * *

The alien purger, sent to Earth to vanquish all life, complacently observed the withering snow above the crater he created. His amused expression detailed his pompous attitude toward his torturous methods, but also blindsided his awareness to his surroundings. He chuckled to himself which bobbed his floating body slightly; the mere thought of destroying an entire planet gave him oodles of excitement.

"HEY, INSECT! DON'T TELL ME THAT YOU DIED ON ME SO QUICKLY! COME OUT FROM THERE BEFORE I PULL YOU OUT MYSELF!" He screeched to his bemusement, his dozens of tiny fangs glinting for all to see.

"If you insist!" Tien number three exclaimed from behind him.

The alien's usually miniscule eyes broadened and his vainglorious sneer turned into a stunned gasp. He quickly pivoted his body one-hundred and eighty degrees, and constricted his eyes. "Apparently you are quicker than I thought", he snarled.

Tien number three confidently floated nearly fifty feet away from the aghast alien menace; his arms were wrapped in front of his chest, and he valiantly stared at his blue opponent. "Maybe you should stop underestimating me, then."

"Humph, I don't see why I shouldn't continue; you may be faster than previously thought, but you cannot lay a finger on me," the alien sneered. He growled when he noticed the Earthling in front of him begin to smirk. "What the hell are you smiling about?"

Suddenly, a horrible pain shot through the alien's back and he was immediately sent hurtling through the air, on a crash course with Tien number 3! The three-eyed warrior's smirk grew as he performed a back-flip, and he extended his right leg outward to perform a bicycle-kick. With a scream of rage, the blue reptilian creature went flying toward the ground, where he was met by one final Tien... this one held his left fist back, and shot it forward to clout the alien's scaly skull; he was promptly sent crashing into the trees of the forest surrounding the clearing, bringing several of them down with him.

The three Tiens landed next to each other and observed the downed warrior. Their solaced expressions were quickly removed once they saw him ascending from the piles of collapsed tree bark, furious. He was unscathed, and quickly wiped off the shards of timber sticking to his white and blue armor.

"AH-HA-HA-HA-HA-HA! That was your best attempt of the day and yet you haven't managed to even give me a scratch yet! Such a pity. Oh well, I suppose I should end this little party right now."

Quicker than the Tiens could realize, he was upon them. They dropped into their guarded stances; one Tien was quickly mauled in the face by a fist and sent smashing backwards, unconscious. The Tiens each decided to attack together, and one quickly attempted to strike his opponent's face several times, while the other tried to kick his knees to set him off-balance. The alien smirked with delight as he easily maneuvered his head around every fist, and pranced along the ground to avoid each kick.

"You two certainly have a neat little trick going, but it isn't enough to seriously give me any sort of challenge!" The alien taunted.

Each Tien furiously increased the ferocity of their strikes, but neither of them could harm the creature. Tien number one screamed in rage as he barraged his opposition with lightning fast punches, but all of them struck air as the alien dodged with extraordinary speed. Tien number two was not having any better luck as all of his strikes were getting easily avoided as well. The alien was like a ballerina, dancing around with precise technique; each attack missed by what seemed to be a mile.

"This is getting truly boring, so I guess I am gonna put a stop to your futile attempts!" The alien proclaimed, immediately after ducking under two fists.

Tien number two flung his right leg forward to try and hit the monster's armored hip, but it was caught. With a diabolical grin, his opponent slammed his large elbow down, cracking his fibula and tibia in several places. The Tien screamed, but his cry for help was quickly silenced when he was thrown into the unconscious Tien number three. They combined, and the resulting Tien remained unconscious.

The last Earthling standing was distraught and at a crossroad. If he merged with his unconscious form, he would gain two thirds of his power back, but how long would it take? Could he make it in time without being struck down by his fiendish enemy? His other option would be to stand and fight, but it was clear that he would quickly die in battle. The three-eyed warrior grimaced and looked into the beady eyes of the blue alien, who smirked with pleasure at the tormented Earthling.

"What are you gonna do, you meddling little bug? If you try to recombine with your... Erm... Friends, I will let you. After all, I want to see you squirm with your _full _power," he challenged.

Tien nodded hesitantly and began hobbling through the snow to reach his destination; he was worn out and injured, and figured taking his time would allow him to recover, even if it was only a slight bit. His adversary frowned at the phlegmatic speed, and quickly phased behind him. Tien carefully glanced back, but was shot forward thanks to a persuasive push from the reptile. He landed face-first into the pile of unconscious copies, and formed one animate body.

"Now that's more like it! Unfortunately, you won't be lasting too long in this state," he sneered.

The human snarled as he slowly arose from the ground. "All right, I've had enough of you! I promised Chiaotzu that I would avenge him and I'm not backing down now!" Tien barked, immediately powering up.

He glared deeply into the soulless eyes of his foe, the senseless murderer of Chiatozu; his green, feathered mohawk fluttered in the light winds as he wrinkled his nearly nonexistent nose and laughed madly at Tien's display of anger. Tien placed his forearms in front of his body, parallel to the snowy ground, and clamped his fists together. His deep, blue aura began to increase around him as his muscles pulsated and increased in size.

"HUAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHH HHHHHHH!" He grunted, waves of cerulean energy bouncing off of both the Earth and his body.

The adversary in front of him smirked as winds struck his body, sending him stumbling backward slightly. "Well? Are we going to do this or are you going to continue to trash the memories of your little friend by cowering in fear?"

In seconds, Tien burst out of his stance and attempted to jab his opponent in the face with a punch; it was knocked aside by a scaly forearm with apparent ease. The Earthling tried to swipe at his right thigh with a quick kick, but the alien pivoted away from it. On his return, he buried his left claw into the ground and jumped off of it; his foot caught the stunned Tien's face and sent him falling backwards with blood gushing out of his nose.

The Earth fighter's death-dealing opponent inched toward his fallen body and flashed a row of glinting teeth, but stopped in his tracks as a small, blue device attached to his hip began to beep. He frowned and tore the the piece of equipment off of his white and blue armor.

The alien turned away from Tien and placed it against the area on his scaly head where his ears should be. "WHAT?! I AM IN THE MIDDLE OF A BATTLE, I WILL REACH MY DESTINATION SOON!" He screeched, upset at the ignorant dunderhead who dared to contact him during his purge on Earth.

After several moments of nothingness, he stammered a hesitant "yes", and pressed a button to turn his communication device off. Whipping around to look at his injured opponent, the alien chuckled with a sly smirk; his black eyes stared at the blood gushing from Tien's face with admiration. "It appears my time has come to a close," he muttered as he outstretched one of his bony fingers. "I thoroughly enjoyed this battle, regardless of your impudence. But now, it is time for you to vanish."

A brilliant flash of light crackled around the blue, pointed finger outstretched at Tien. The reptilian beast flared with giddy as he pointed his lips upward like daggers, revealing the entirety of his fanged mouth; he literally drooled with pleasure as he felt the power course through him.

"Whether or not you can hear me means nothing to me; I want you to feel this attack like you've never felt anything before!" He exclaimed, raising his head in confident strides. "This begins the destruction of your whole planet. As one of your famous inhabitants said, 'one small attack for me... one giant leap for Lord Atrox'!"

With no remorse, a flash of purple energy ripped through the freezing air, heading straight for the near-lifeless body of Tien. After seemingly connecting, a brilliant explosion of energy erupted, completely tearing through the fibers of the air and sending a shockwave in every direction; the proud alien trembled as a gust of wind pelted him, but laughed maniacally as he watched his attack succeed.

"... Ah, the joys of being a scout for the most powerful army in the universe. You know, if you were a good boy you could have just asked to join us, but it is too late now, isn't it." He folded his arms across his chestplate and eyed the newly-formed crater, covered in a thick smoke. "Anyways, I am just rambling, considering you're dead and all, but I really did en- WHAT THE HELL?!"

As the smoke cleared, the crater was empty... Such a blast would not have completely disintegrated Tien. The alien's jaw dropped in disgust and his eyes broadened in fear as he swiveled his head in all directions. Unfortunately for him, he noticed a green figure holding the unconscious body of the Earthling.

"You've made a grave mistake coming to Earth- a mistake that will cost you your life."

* * *

A/N: I hope you enjoyed this chapter. I am not going to lie; this chapter took me several weeks to write. I was busy with basketball and I had serious writer's block, but I was able to finish it in a sufficient manner, hopefully. Please review, and thanks for reading!

**Recommended Stories:  
**  
"A Tortured Soul" by KaiserNight

"Appule's Insurrection" by Pointer39

"Art of Survival" by Niteryde

"Break Through the Limit" by Captain Space

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"Cognitive Dissonance" by The Forgotten Phoenix

"Cold World" by jjgp1112

"Dragonball New Beginnings: The Ammit Saga" by KyLewin

"Dragon Ball Z: The Earthling Chronicles" by FinalFlashX

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"Justice Enforcer" by KaiserNight

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"To Live Again" by Niteryde

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"Second Chance" by Full Power

"Side Story- Sibling Ties" by FireStorm1991

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**Also...**

"The Terror of Mewtwo" by LucifVegeta

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DISCLAIMER: Dragon Ball Z AH: The Atrox Saga is a completely non-profit story, made by a fan, for fans. I do not own anything affiliated with Dragon Ball Z.


	8. The Namekian Protector

Last time, on Dragon Ball Z... Rabidus, an alien from a strange army, murdered Chiaotzu. Tien fought against him and lost, but his life was saved by Piccolo. Roy asked Krillint to attend the party with him, and Krillin deviously accepted..

* * *

_**"It has begun, Master. One of Atrox's men has already landed on Earth and has been engaging with a human in battle. Shall I interfere?"**_

_**"No, not yet. Allow yourself to see how powerful these earthlings are. Their fight for survival will give us a glimpse at the difficulties ahead."  
**_

_**"Yes, Master."**_

* * *

The brakes screeched on top of the hot pavement as Krillin's jet-black sedan came to a halt. Through the shut doors and windows, Roy and Krillin could both clearly hear blasting pop music and mindless chattering. Roy exhaled as he fiddled with his bright red bowtie, and shot a nervous glance at Krillin. The bald monk smirked as he admired his shiny appearance in the car mirror before turning to Roy.

"Everything all right, bud?"

The taller warrior shrugged. "I guess... I'm having second thoughts about this one, Krillin. Maybe we should just head home," Roy meekly suggested.

Krillin widened his smile at the thought and looked back into the mirror before stroking his eyebrows. "And what makes you say that?"

"Nobody is wearing a tuxedo but us. Everyone is wearing regular clothing! Krillin, I hate to say it, but you don't seem to know what you're doing," Roy pouted, crossing his arms and glancing back outside.

"I've heard that a million times before," Krillin muttered. "Fine, I am not going to force you to go to some party. Besides, now seems like a pretty good time to meet some of my friends. Should I invite them over or something? I don't want to bring back this tuxedo without wearing it even once!"

Roy flashed a smile and bobbed his head like a yo-yo. "That sounds awesome! Maybe I could get some training in as well!"

"Yeah, I bet you'd love to train with someone like Piccolo! He's incredibly strong. Anyways, now that I think about it, this suit is really uncomfortable... Let's get rollin."

Roy nodded once again and turned his head to look out the window. Earth was all so strange to him; he couldn't help but wish he was back on his home planet. Regardless, the prospect of training with powerful warriors to quell his silent pursuer once and for all was enticing indeed.

* * *

Wafts of chilling arctic mists flowed freely throughout the air in the battleground. Piccolo's stoic glare reached the scaled alien's astonished demeanor; his master had not informed him that the Earthlings had a Namekian on their side. After the initial staredown wore off, the reptilian creature curved his lips and chuckled inwardly. It made no difference that a Namekian was on Earth; he had experience dealing with them before as part of Frieza's Planet Trade Organization, and their power levels were incredibly weak.

He smirked at Piccolo's confident guise. "Well," he hissed, narrowing his eyes at the green creature. "I suppose we have an uninvited guest."

"We do..." Piccolo muttered, intensifying his stern glare. "And it isn't me. Tell me what you're doing here... Or else."

Piccolo's adversary widened his grin. "And what if I say no? Based on my previous dealings with you Namekians, I would say that there is _nothing _you can do to harm me," he hissed. "Regardless, I suppose it would only be fair for me to tell you why you will perish today. Lord Atrox has demanded that this planet be purged of all life; he has... _Plans_ for it, in the future."

The Namekian's usual stoic face loosened as he allowed a ghost of a smile to appear. It was painfully obvious that this Lord Atrox had sent the blue creature to his doom. Earth was known for its extremely powerful fighters; why would a single alien with little power- compared to Goku, of course- be sent to purge it on his own? Piccolo carefully placed the battered body of Tien on the snow beneath him. Next came the weighted turban and cloak, both crashing onto the ground and releasing puffs of snow into the air. He rose from his kneeling position and met the teeny eyes of his opponent.

"Your master has sent you to your grave, alien. You really think that he would send a warrior of your caliber to purge a planet like Earth? He is either setting you up to fail, or severely uninformed. I recommend you leave... _Now_," he stated, not leaving his intense stare.

"My master is _never _uninformed. He has a purpose for everything he does and I can assure you that I am the most powerful creature on this ball of dirt," the alien rasped. He smirked back at the green warrior and folded his muscular, scaly biceps over his chest. Previously, his master had informed him that his mission was to eliminate every earthling on the planet, and that was exactly what he was going to do.

Piccolo kept his stoic approach, but was more than happy to realize his ploy was succeeding. If he kept prodding and carefully wording his phrases, he could get this alien to reveal important details...

"That may be so, but you still have not told me why your master sent you. He is clearly playing with your mind, alien." The blue monstrosity's calm demeanor briefly turned into one of anger, but he quickly regained his composure with a slight smile.

"Firstly, my name is not _alien, _it is Rabidus. Secondly, you don't know Lord Atrox, Namekian. He is ingenious, and no doubt was prepared for whatever warriors inhabit this pitiful planet. Enough idle chat!" He screeched, dropping his arms to his sides and clenching his clawed fists.

Piccolo frowned and narrowed his wise, blackened eyes; he knew he wouldn't get any further information by talking.

_Hmph, this will be tougher than I thought. Looks like I will just have to beat it out of him; from what I can tell, his strength is nothing spectacular.  
_

The Namekian warrior flexed his forearms and dropped them, placing them parallel to the ground beneath him. Almost immediately, a blazing white aura erupted from within. Piccolo gritted his sharpened teeth and glared at Rabidus; the blue creature also began to increase his aura until a green wave of energy overwhelmed him. In mere seconds, both warriors exploded from their stances and charged at each other. Piccolo realized he had a rather large advantage in pure strength, and from watching the end of his battle with Tien, an advantage in skill as well.

With a screech, Rabidus flung his right arm back and thrust it forward, but to his surprise it struck air. Immediately after, Piccolo came crashing down upon him with a kick to his back; the blue alien came crashing down to the ground.

_All too easy, _Piccolo thought to himself as he decreased his altitude.

Rabidus growled and furiously clenched particles of snow before rolling onto his back to look at the Namekian. The green warrior merely frowned at his opponent before speaking. "Like I told you, your master has sent you to your death. You are severely outclassed."

The blue creature's tiny eyes seemingly bulged out of his sockets and grinned before sitting himself up. "After one attack?! Please! You caught me off-guard, but it won't happen again; for that, I can be sure!"

Instantly, he jumped from his position and attempted to headbutt Piccolo, but the Namekian was much faster, and easily sidestepped the attack. Rabidus gaped his jaw in rage before feeling an intense shot of pain in his lower back; he swiveled his head to notice an elbow lodged into his spinal column. Such an attack would be devastating to the central nervous system of many other species, but luckily for Rabidus, his vertebrae was protected in a way unlike those other species. Despite the pain flowing throughout his body, he smirked at Piccolo's attempt to no-doubt defeat Rabidus for good.

"So is that all you can do? I do hope yo-"

Within seconds, Piccolo's left hand socked the blue creature's face, sending him crashing into the treeline of the forest. The impact cracked several trees in half, sending their top halves tumbling down into the clearing and rolling off of the dazed alien. Piccolo hovered above the downed body of his opponent; Rabidus was reeling in pain and clutching his jaw tightly as dark green blood dripped beneath him. The alien sneered at his opponent's confident pose, a smattering of lime blood caked on his cheek. Piccolo continued his stare, gazing deeply into the soul of Rabidus; it was time for him to make his next move, and the wise Namek didn't want to be caught off guard.

As if on cue, Rabidus snarled and burst from his kneeling position, straight toward Piccolo. There was a noticeable difference in speed as the wind whipped past his body, but Rabidus was never used fighting with an opponent stronger than himself. He brought his knee back and flung it forward. Piccolo swiveled his hip to the right in order to avoid the knee, and casually slammed his elbow into an astonished Rabidus's spine. The blue alien fell forward with a hideous shriek, and Piccolo continued his assault with a quick kick to his buttocks, effectively sending him soaring back into the treeline.

Piccolo overlapped his bulging arms over his chest and sneered at Rabidus before frowning at himself. After several seconds of completely dominating the alien warrior, he began to realize that it was doubtful that whatever master Rabidus spoke of would simply leave the Earth alone if Rabidus was killed. But if he wasn't, he would continue his reign of terror upon Earth's weaker population. The Namekian hovered slightly above Rabidus once again; this time, he was certain the alien wouldn't be stupid enough to attack him head-on.

Piccolo snarled and landed in the snow next to the grimacing alien. "All right, this is getting ridiculous- you either tell me what your master wants with Earth or put up a fight, and I can guarantee you that you would prefer the former!"

"You… You would like that, wouldn't you?" sneered the blue creature. "But it doesn't matter if you know about my master… You are nothing compared to him! No one, let alone some pathetic green creature on Earth, rivals his grand power!"

"Last time I checked, that pathetic green creature was about to kill you," Piccolo muttered stoically, staring daggers into Rabidus's tiny black eyes.

For a quick second, the alien appeared terrified, shriveling backwards against the tree he was leaning on, but he quickly realigned himself and smirked. "That's what you think, Namek. You may have gotten some lucky shots in, but I am more powerful than you could possibly comprehend! Now: prepare yourself!"

Instantly, the alien phased from his position and appeared behind Piccolo, who whipped around in total surprise. Before he could block the alien, he was struck with a chop to the face. Blocking the pain out, he ducked under the next fist and slid his left leg toward his opponent to try and trip him down, but Rabidus avoided it by jumping upward. Piccolo immediately launched forward and struck his opponent in the gut with a fist; Rabidus screeched with pain and doubled over, creating an immense opening that Piccolo was happy to exploit. He placed his hand above Rabidus's scaly head, and kneed the alien's abdominal region several times, creating a reaction that sent the pained creature's head crashing into Piccolo's outstretched fist.

The Namekian allowed Rabidus to fall to the ground in devastating pain; his head had several large bruises that most likely caused some sort of brain damage. Adding to that, his stomach had a large gash, creating a river of green blood that flowed freely into the snow and seeped through. The alien's usually wry face was completely wrinkled up and he was cursing in fury, slamming his fist on the ground as he arched forward. Piccolo curved his lip upward in disgust and placed both of his hands above his head; a speckle of golden energy began to form.

"This has gone on far enough. For the murder of Chiaotzu and the attempted murder of Tien, you are going to get what you deserve," the warrior of Namek threatened.

Rabidus cowered in fear, pattering backwards as fast as he could from his injured, kneeling position. "N-no!" he stammered. "Y-you will never g-get what you desire by killing me! I can tell you everything you want to know! Just don't kill me!"

Although he didn't allow anyone to see, Piccolo smirked with pride. He lowered his hands; it appeared his plan was finally beginning to work.

"Go ahead. I'm certainly not stopping you."

The alien snarled and narrowed his minute eyes at the bold Namekian. "Realize that no matter what I tell you, my master will eliminate you all."

"I've heard."

"Hmph. You won't be so bold once you hear the grave details of your future, Namek."

"Then go ahead and tell me before I change my decision."

Rabidus grinned at Piccolo and shook his head with laughter. "Aha-ha-ha-ha-ha! I cannot wait to see the terror that will lace your face once you hear my words! In just three short years, my master, Lord Atrox, will land on Earth to enslave the entire population. He has enough power to defeat ten Friezas with only one small blast! And I swear to you, once he places his domineering presence on this meager planet, the world will cower in fear from his dark power!"

_Enslave the entire population… Enough power to defeat ten Friezas with only one small blast…_

Piccolo widened his eyes and allowed his jaw to drop slightly; he was incredibly afraid of the words of Rabidus, that much was true.

_Not even Goku could defeat ten Friezas, let alone with one blast… How can we possibly stand up to this threat?! I must inform the others so they can train. This is unbelievable! _

"Cat got your tongue, Namek?" Rabidus sarcastically asked, flashing a row of white teeth as he finally stood up from his kneeling position. "Or are you already too afraid to understand the magnitude of this situation?"

"We will be prepared for your master, Rabidus. Now, your usefulness is up, and unfortunately I have some business to attend to. Now DIE!"

The Namekian placed his pointer finger and middle finger on his forehead and growled as energy slowly began to build. Crackles of pure power snapped from his aura and Rabidus merely smiled.

"No, no, it is YOU WHO WILL DIE! I suppose I should warn you: my ultimate attack will leave you in pieces!"

The alien instantly cupped his hands and put them next to his right pectoral, which began a charging process similar to Piccolo's. In a few seconds, the energy output began to create a rumbling in the ground; a massive ball of blue, green, and red energy instantaneously appeared in Rabidus's hands. Piccolo gasped, and attempted to increase the speed of his own charging. Soon, sparks of energy bounced between each aura, and small fissures began appearing underneath the massive piles of snow.

"ARE YOU READY TO DIE, NAMEKIAN?!" Rabidus shrieked with pleasure.

Piccolo snarled and dropped his hand downward before extending it forward. It was almost ready; it would only take a few more seconds…

"INSANUS TURBO!" The blue alien released his blast as a huge blast of multi-colored energy; it soared through the air, completely tearing through the very fabric of the molecular world as it swirled with power. Within seconds, the incredible blast neared Piccolo and completely engulfed the Namekian, continuing its path of destruction for miles until it decimated a mountain, exploding on contact and tearing apart nearly half of the range.

Rock and rubble dropped downward many miles below the two warriors. Tiny pebbles and blocks of stone collided with the snow, and as for everything else... Silence. Rabidus sighed and rubbed his head, which was still throbbing from the beating that Piccolo gave him. Fate appeared to be with the blue alien, and he silently promised himself that he wouldn't be so careless next time... Regardless, he had some mocking to do- just to increase his own confidence.

"Well, it appears that he was too slow to counteract my attack. Pity, my master would have enjoyed removing him from existence," he softly muttered to himself, basking in his own glory.

"He's lucky, then. He still may get that chance after all."

Rabidus gasped and apprehensively turned around to see a completely unharmed Piccolo. "Y-you… H-how c-could… NO! YOU WILL D-"

"SPECIAL BEAM CANNON!"

Before he could continue his nervous rant, Piccolo released his own blast; Rabidus was frozen in fear and could only watch the beam pierce his head, killing him instantly. The blue alien collapsed to the ground as his inner green fluid soaked into the snow, and Piccolo's attack soared into the forest; the resulting explosion shook the entire mountain range.

Piccolo contracted his chest for a deep breath and then rotated his body around. He glided over to Tien and carefully flung the unconscious warrior over his shoulder.

_I'm sorry Tien. I couldn't save Chiaotzu... Forgive me._

And into the wind, Piccolo flew.

* * *

Roshi's beach-house beckoned the arrival of Krillin and Roy, and welcomed them with open arms as they both landed on the sandy shore. Krillin was carrying his sleek sedan with relative ease and allowed it to slide off of his iron grasp and onto the ground of the island. During the flight, the warriors debated on Krillin's questionable decision to travel by car and then carry it back to the island after every excursion. Despite Roy's limited knowledge of Earthly life, he assumed that traveling in a much slower manner and then having to carry the vehicle instead of just flying was a massive waste of time and effort.

The warrior had only been on Earth for a few days, but his adaptation was surprisingly smooth and he welcomed a new life on Earth. After years of fleetingly living, constantly on guard, it felt comforting for him to know that he was safe with his new friends. Amidst Roy's thoughts, the warrior grimaced in pain and looked down at his stomach; it seemed as if a large knot had accrued and was tugging on his abdominal muscles. He frowned and hastily retreated upstairs, leaning on the banister for support. After finally reaching his room, he slid under his fluffy, red covers; he desperately wished for the pain to subside, but there was nothing he could do but wait it out. So many times in his life had he experienced pain, and this was just another time.

Still, after several moments, his pain did not subside. In fact, it increased in intensity. The warrior gnashed his teeth together and felt the pain overtake him and it seemingly engulfed him in a shroud of darkness. In the epicenter of the painful experience, a metaphorical hook caught hold of Roy's very soul and dragged it out of him, taking him somewhere...

* * *

It was a cavern. An endless, shadowy cavern, but a cavern nonetheless. It was nearly impossible to see anything let alone explore, so Roy was delegated to flaring his energy in order to view glimpses of his surroundings. The warrior seemingly glided across the damp stone floor; strangely, his presence did not cause any effects. No ripples on the ground, no squishes beneath his feet, not even a shadow trailing behind. It was as if Roy was not even there... But he expected it. To him, he was in a very realistic dream- albeit a dream where he was completely aware of his present vicinity.

"Hello...?" Roy questioned, glancing around and eagerly anticipating another presence.

His voice echoed across the cavern for what seemed like minutes until it finally died out, and then there was more silence. Roy sighed and folded his arms over his chest. There would be no answers, and he had to simply wait out his strangely lucid dream. Or so he thought...

Trudging forward, Roy continued his search for a reasoning behind his state of being. He turned corner after corner, venturing into several different pathways, until finally he reached a square room that seemed to be the endpoint of the cavernous maze. As soon as he entered the room, he dropped onto one knee off of instinct; it seemed like an invisible wall of negative energy immediately penetrated his very soul and sucked all of his life out until he was a hapless pile of mush.

_Damn! What power! For some reason, all of my energy is just lying dormant and refusing to be used!_

"Is... Is a-anyone there?" Roy stammered, unintentionally dropping into a dog-like position under the waves of immense pressure.

"I suppose I am 'here', but it would be rather proper for me to say otherwise. After all, neither of us are truly 'here'. If I am 'here', then you are 'there'. Therefore, if you are referring to 'here' as in your place of residence... Well, I am afraid I am certainly not 'here'. And now, let us begin with the formalities... Hello, Roy."

The voice was ominous, yet calming; fearsome, yet relaxing; chilling, yet warm. It was a complete paradox. Roy hesitantly raised his head, expecting to see an unfriendly sight, but was perplexed when all he witnessed was a shadowy figure lost in a thick fog. He blinked several times before gulping and clamping his fists together like irons.

"Uh... H-hi... Now... Where am I?!"

The shadowy figure could barely be seen, but its huge frame opened its arms in welcome. "You are in my humble abode- my tomb, rather- and I would appreciate it if you took in these sights. After all, you will be expected to aid me in its opening, in time..."

The curiosity continued to assault Roy, and he knew that continuing his conversation would be a bad idea. Still, he wanted to know what the hell had happened, what the hell the creature was orating, and how to get out.

"All right, I don't exactly understand, but whatever. So, am I in a dream or what?" Roy hesitantly asked, quirking his eyebrow up.

From behind the shadowy veil, the illusory figure seemed to be laughing as its chest heaved upward and back downward in rapid succession. Roy attempted to shrug in annoyance, but couldn't; it seemed the field of negative energy inhibited his movement.

"Alright, what the hell?!"

The silent laughter stopped as the shadow seemed to freeze. The faint sound of dripping from the stalactites above kept silence from creeping in, and the figure began to speak in its elegant manner.

"This is not reality, but yet, you are here. You are not dreaming, but you are in a dream. And as for your inhibition... Ask yourself why you cannot bring your very body to move, Roy," it smoothly stated.

The paradoxical comments scraped against Roy's ears like sharp knives, enraging the lighthearted boy. As it was, the horrendous feeling of not being able to move certainly didn't help matters.

"Okay, I've had enough of this nonsense. Either explain yourself or I swear I will never open your stupid tomb, you big s-"

"NO!"

The sudden scream sent a jolt of surprise into Roy's paralyzed body, and his eyes enlarged with deep astonishment. It seemed that the burst of oration created a large gust of wind that easily penetrated past Roy and sent wisps of spit into his hair. The hapless warrior couldn't avoid the stream, so he bared down and allowed it to hit him head on. Still, he was intrigued, despite the disgusting act by the creature, so he let it slide.

"... Okay, I'm sorry! Just tell me what I want to know, please. Especially the 'how to get out' part... Honestly, this is really creepin' me out."

The creature sighed, before slowly bobbing his head (rather, head shaped appendage) through the thick, darkened fog. "I will tell you what you wish to know, my friend. But please, do not make threats like that... I find myself rather easy to scare considering my current... _condition_."

Nodding, Roy readily accepted the offer. He was used to being in tight spots before- in a literal and figurative sense- and this was no different in that matter. But somehow, the energy flowing throughout the caverns sucked the life out of the warrior... literally. Every passing second dragged Roy down even further, and it pained him to speak. To make matters worse for him, the shadowy fog continued to inhibit the warrior's vision; it was quite a pain to talk to such a strange creature in such a strange place without being able to see him, her, or it.

Remembering his entrance into the dreamlike state, Roy quirked his brow and frowned. Everything was just... off. He wished Krillin was there. Hell, even Yamcha! Just someone to give him somewhat of a calming feeling. Times like these were certainly natural to the hardened man, but the sheer amount of stress raining down upon Roy was enough to make even him nervous.

Breaking Roy's thoughts, a soft and dark voice arose. The creature began to speak."We all long for a time of peace... security... _justice_... but that time is _unreachable_," he muttered. And for the first time, Roy could make out his eyes: blood-red, glaring daggers. Before Roy could make out anything else, the fog returned and the creature began to speak once more.

"Everyone in the universe- including you and I- takes every single thing for granted. Trivial, meager events and extraordinary moments are thrust aside for the future. It is undeniable, Roy; we aren't meant to live in a life of bemusement and joy. Of course, that is only so because of those blasted Kais... Are you famliiar with them, Roy?"

The Kais? The name didn't resonate with Roy. "I'm afraid not," Roy stated in response.

A faint chuckle emerged from the creature's diaphragm. "Hah! I should have assumed. Those dreadful creatures keep to themselves... Roy, the Kais are self-proclaimed rulers of the universe. Complete heretics of truth and justice! They only rule because they have usurped the throne from the rightful owner."

"And who would that be?" Roy interrupted with narrowed eyes.

Across from Roy's questioning self, the fog loomed around the shadowy figure, thick air hanging over the cavernous environment, tiny drops of ice-cold water pelting the smooth ground, and one word was uttered: "me."

"Wh-what?!" Roy implored... could it be true? Was the creature standing before him really the ruler of the entire universe? It was certainly possible, but Roy didn't know one thing about the hierarchy overarching the natural world. Hell, he didn't even know who the Kais were- if they even existed. Which brought Roy to another train of thought: was this all a lie? It was odd enough to even be in his position, so how could he tell if the creature was telling the truth? He definitely seemed convincing, although he knew better than to trust someone based on charm and eloquence.

Through the thick fog, Roy could've sworn he noticed a slight glimmer of a smirk. The figure spoke once again. "I was a god, Roy... the power coursing through my veins was enough to banish even the most evil of souls, and give hope to the light in the galaxy... but of course, the power-hungry abominations known as the Kais took it all away! I was banished on some hypocritical whim that my power was too great to control... So naturally, the Kais took over as universal leaders. And who could stop them? Nobody even knew they existed! Such a shame, really."

Roy nodded in understanding. "Yeah, I suppose that is rather odd... but it seems to me that the Kais haven't truly done anything wrong as rulers of the universe... care to elaborate?"

"HA!" The creature immediately screamed, causing a gust of wind to zoom past Roy. "You truly don't comprehend the maniacal idiocy floating above your universe. Horrific beings like Frieza, King Cold, Cooler, and thousands of others are simply allowed to carry out their evil endeavors whenever they so choose! When I led, those despicable tyrants would be lucky to survive birth... I was judge, jury... _executioner_. The world reveled in peace, and now... evil is everywhere."

"Interesting," Roy muttered. Something didn't feel right with the story, but it seemed like his evidence was solid... after all, evil beings WERE everywhere. "So, now that I understand why _you_ are here- because the Kais banished you- why am _I_ here?"

"Because, Roy!" the creature responded, his voice increasing in loudness. "You are part of a plot greater than anything imaginable! I chose you were specific reasons beyond your understanding, but they all point to one thing: you and only you can save me from my tomb. The Kais have made a FATAL mistake, Roy. Show them that we- the rightful lord of the universe and his apprentice- are NOT... to be trifled with."

Within milliseconds, Roy dematerialized out of the air.

* * *

**Recommended Stories:  
**  
"A Tortured Soul" by KaiserNight

"Appule's Insurrection" by Pointer39

"Art of Survival" by Niteryde

"Break Through the Limit" by Captain Space

"Bringer of Death" by Npberryhill

"Cognitive Dissonance" by The Forgotten Phoenix

"Cold World" by jjgp1112

"Dragonball New Beginnings: The Ammit Saga" by KyLewin

"Dragon Ball Z: The Earthling Chronicles" by FinalFlashX

"Frozen Memories" by FireStorm1991

"Guardian" by Super Vegetarott

"In the Shadows" by Niteryde

"Justice Enforcer" by KaiserNight

"Kageto: The Saiyan Supreme and the Fate Protectors" by Kagetoworld

"To Live Again" by Niteryde

"Point of No Return" by Niteryde

"Rediscovering Honor" by LPphreek

"Saiyan Rising" by EFJRAD

"Second Chance" by Full Power

"Side Story- Sibling Ties" by FireStorm1991

"Sins of the Father" by Super Vegetarott

"The Yamucha Chronicle" by DoraMouse

"Zarbon's Rebellion" by FinalFlashX

**Also...**

"The Terror of Mewtwo" by LucifVegeta

"When Worlds Collide" by LucifVegeta and FireStorm1991

DISCLAIMER: Dragon Ball Z AH: The Atrox Saga is a completely non-profit story, made by a fan, for fans. I do not own anything affiliated with Dragon Ball Z.


	9. Preparations Begin

Last time, on Dragon Ball Z... Piccolo killed Rabidus, but not before figuring out who he was and what he wanted... He learned about the horrible invasion that would come in three years... Krillin and Roy went to Ashley's party and engaged in some strange Earthling activities before leaving out of pure fear and embarrassment. Roy found himself in a dreamlike state speaking to a strange, shadowy creature...

* * *

Roy "awoke" with a start, and rocketed upward to a sitting position in his bed. Beads of sweat trickled down from his forehead and bounced off of his fluffed sheets. It was evident that his escapade in the mysterious cavern had left a negative impression on his parasympathetic nervous system, allowing the sympathetic nervous system to take over. After several deep breaths, his heart rate slowed and he wiped a sheet of perspiration off of his face.

_Okay, that was weird. It seemed so real, but that shadowy thing was pretty adamant that I wasn't actually there… Ugh, this is confusing. _

The warrior realized he was still in a tuxedo, and hurriedly changed back into his regular attire: a red tank top and black shorts. After his changing session, Roy began to pace circles around the small bedroom, with his hands locked behind his back.

_I definitely have to tell someone about this… But I don't know anyone who would understand! Definitely not Krillin. Let's see… I could go to that Golar guy, but I think he's up to something… Then again, it might be better than talking to Vegeta or whatever his name was… Or… Wait a minute!_

A proverbial light bulb shone bright above Roy's head as he smirked to himself for thinking of a solid plan of action.

_Krillin told me Kami and Mr. Popo could help me find Hamaal, so it might be a good place to start. Now, I just have to find them… _

Amidst his deep pondering, several knocks on the front door alerted Roy to a minor annoyance: Krillin's friends were supposed to meet him. With a groan, Roy pinched the bridge of his nose. After initial greetings, he heard the group clomp up the wooden stairs and begin to approach his room.

_Great… I don't have time for this! That creature's warning is really bothering me and I have to get to Kami before I do something rash… _

As the stomping on the stairs grew in loudness, Roy unfortunately did something rash. Quickly phasing over to the window, he grabbed ahold of it and opened it before sliding himself out. He hovered next to the window, and before he knew it, the door swung open. Roy immediately flew upward and out of sight. Below, he heard several voices- one was Krillin's, and one was unfamiliar.

"Hey bro! Uh… you there, Roy? Yamcha's here to see you!"

After several seconds of absolute silence, the bald-headed monk turned to the scarred fighter and shrugged.

"Must be in the bathroom or something," Krillin suggested.

Yamcha quickly shook his head. "Nah, I sense a power level. It seems like he's outside."

Roy facepalmed. _I thought this guy would be an idiot…_

The warrior faked a smile before floating downward to the open window, allowing the slight winds to brush against his clothing. "Hey guys, I was just outside meditating. It's real peaceful outside, you know?"

Krillin smiled and eyed Yamcha who extended his hand toward Roy. His short, shaggy hair blocked some of his scars, but Roy could tell that he had lived a troubled past. Naturally, he worriedly began to think that the earthlings had endured some hardships in the past. His smile became slightly sympathetic, although his goal of reaching Kami sooner rather than later was still on his mind.

"Hi, I'm Roy," he told Yamcha.

The former bandit smiled widely in return. "Hey bud! I'm Yamcha! Remember me? I watched you while you were unconscious!"

Immediately, the warrior began to regret his awkward statement as Roy and Krillin both glanced at each other in slight horror. Yamcha squinted his eyes and rambled inaudible phrases before stopping his fit of laughter with a deep breath.

"Um, ha-ha, what I _meant _to say was that I saw you after your crash! How are you doing now that you've seen what earthlings do for a living?" He asked, nervously placing his hand behind his head.

Roy slowly nodded and attempted to rid his mind of the horrific images that Yamcha unintentionally gave him. "It's been all right. I haven't truly adjusted yet, especially with school." Suddenly, another light bulb turned on in his brain.

"You know, speaking of school, I have a project that I have to do. It involves… uh… going to Kami's place! Can I have directions?" He asked glancing between Krillin and Yamcha.

The scarred one began to chuckle. "Nobody knows about that place except for us Z Fighters and our friends… Why on Earth do you need to visit that place?"

"Well," Roy began, as his nerves started to act up. "I, uh, I need to research a unique place on the Earth. That was the most unique place I could come up with!"

After his statement, he smirked inwardly as he thought of his excuse. It would surely work, especially since he really did have a project involving the research of a landmark in his backpack. It seemed that Krillin and Yamcha each bought the excuse, as Krillin started to point outside.

"All right, just head outside and fly pretty darn high. Kami's Lookout is the tallest thing on the planet. You can't miss it!" He explained.

With a nod and a wave, the warrior burst out of the still-open window, exploding into the sky. The two earthlings in Roy's bedroom started to go downstairs, where their friends would be arriving shortly.

"He'll be back soon. Until then, we might as well have a good time," Yamcha suggested with a shrug. Krillin agreed and the duo continued their stroll downstairs.

* * *

Roy weaved in and out of the clouds at blinding speed; to citizens below, he was surely invisible. The thrill of flying, among many other things, intrigued him. It seemed he was a different person when the adrenaline hit. To him, regular life was terrifying and unfamiliar, but battles and the like were comforting.

It must have been because of his strange past. After all, his entire past was dedicated to running and fighting. Living comfortably with friends and family was strange and difficult to do for him simply because he was not used to it.

After several minutes of steadfast flight, the troubled warrior saw the lookout in the distance. He landed softly, and smiled as he admired the aesthetic beauty surrounding him. The entire lookout was covered in stone tile, including a carpeted walkway leading to a large palace-like building. Lining the outside of the walkway was a plethora of potted plants, all blooming with vigor and life. Rows of trees were found in several places on the seemingly floating building, and in the middle of it all was a chubby, dark genie.

Roy flashed a smile and hustled over to the creature, who carefully tended to a young flower.

"Hey there, Kami!" Roy exclaimed, startling the genie and sending his bucket of water tumbling to the ground.

"Oh, my! This is quite unfortunate," he muttered. He snapped his finger and the water quickly dissipated. "Oh, hello there! My name is not Kami, but may I still be of assistance?"

Roy furrowed his brow before raising his left eye. "Wait… this isn't Kami's lookout?"

The black genie chuckled to himself before shaking his head. "Yes, this is Kami's lookout. But you are talking to his caretaker; my name is Mr. Popo. I will retrieve Kami if you would like."

"That would be spectacular!" Roy stated, before glancing back at the peculiar plants beneath him. "Say, this sure is beautiful up here."

Popo grinned as he crossed his arms. "Well, I keep my gardening duties on the top of pecking order. Now, I will return in a few moments."

Roy nodded and continued to admire Popo's work. In nearly a minute, he felt the presence of two others, and swiveled his head upward. Standing next to Popo was an old, green creature wearing a white robe and leaning on a cane. There was something... different about Kami's face. It was wrinkled and tired, but he gazed deeply at Roy with a stare so wise and powerful that it somewhat frightened Roy. The Namekian glanced at Popo and began to speak.

"Popo, please leave us. I can sense that this young one is very troubled," Kami explained, and Popo quickly strolled away from the congregation.

The old Namekian looked at Roy and stroked the top of his cane. "Now, what I can do for you, my son?"

Roy nodded and prepared to describe his unique situation. "Thanks for this opportunity, Kami. My name is Roy, and about thirty minutes ago, something… occurred. I cannot describe it very well, but I can try.

I came home from a party with my friend, Krillin, and hopped in bed because I wasn't feeling very well. As soon as I landed, it was like a hook reached into my body and stole my soul from me. I don't know how or why it happened, but it took me into some cavern or something. I explored for several minutes until I found this humongous shadow, and it began to speak to me…

It told me that I was the key to the future of the world and it told me that I would eventually open his tomb. I had no clue what he was talking about, but his energy was enormous… It was even bigger than Krillin's or Vegeta's. After his speech, he returned me to reality and I woke up. Obviously this whole experience was really strange to me, so I decided to come to you for help… Anything you can tell me?"

Roy's story imprinted deeply into Kami's soul; he had a feeling that something bad was going to happen. He silently stared into the distance, allowing the serenity to calm him and give him enlightenment. After several moments, the silence was broken with his command.

"Go down Snake Way and meet with King Kai. He-"

"NO!" Roy screamed. His outburst startled the old man, who backed up in shock.

"I… I don't know if I trust the Kais, unfortunately," Roy stated. His gaze remained on the Namekian's figure; he meant every word of what he said.

Kami narrowed his eyes and glared at Roy much like a parent. "The Kais are the most trustworthy creatures in the universe. What makes you distrust them?"

"Well," Roy began, dodging Kami's stern stare. "The creature told me that the Kais wrongly imprisoned him and are ruling unjustly."

"WHAT?!" Kami screeched, his eyes bulging through his sockets. "This… This is most troubling, Roy," he muttered, straightening his robes and returning to his staunch posture. "Are you absolutely sure that you didn't imagine these visions? It is often hard to adjust to a new planet and life."

Roy confidently shook his head. "No. I did not imagine this… It happened. That I can be sure of."

Kami nodded and gazed into the horizon. The sun was beginning its long descent downward and the winds were beginning to increase in tenacity. It seemed to be a perfect description of the feelings that Kami had toward Roy's visions: the future was bleak. He glanced at Roy before looking back into the sky.

"I am the guardian of Earth, Son. And let me tell you this: I have never been more horrified in my long, long, life. If you have another one of these "meetings", please do not listen to this creature. I know of no one ever being imprisoned by the Kais, and I must console with them further if I am to find out who is behind this. Please be careful, Roy. Please be careful…"

* * *

Piccolo softly emerged on the frontal shore of Roshi's island. Laughter rang throughout the entire Kame House as friends had fun with friends. The Namekian grimaced as his advanced hearing enabled him to listen in on the multitude of conversations. Was his arrival going to change to mood into one of sullen silence? Most likely. After all, he had heard many things that would make even the most powerful Earthling cringe. And, to make matters worse, that was without Goku. Regardless, Piccolo knew that he had to share the terrible news; he just couldn't bare to see the look of pure horror that would soon be gracing young Gohan's face.

It was no secret that the demi-Saiyan was extraordinarily troubled by Goku's absence, as evident by his dismal attitude toward fighting and even life itself. Time and time again Gohan would keep to himself, and Roy's arrival only made things worse. Piccolo braced himself for a storm of sadness as he silently began to approach the quaint little house. He grabbed the doorknob with his free green hand and thrust it open.

Initial shock was evident everywhere. Bulma gasped and placed her delicate hand over her mouth, and Chi-Chi followed in the same pattern. Everyone else simply stared in awe at the entrance, and especially at the unconscious Tien.

"Piccolo! What happened to Tien?!" Krillin queried nervously, before hustling over to the Namek's frowning figure.

Piccolo dropped Tien's limp body on the wooden floor, prepping for the inevitable senzu recovery. He growled as Krillin bent down to place the restorative bean in Tien's slightly agape mouth. "He got taken by surprise... by some alien... he never stood a chance."

Raising his head to make sure he heard the correct words, Krillin clenched his fists and shook with a new, vigorous round of nervousness. "Y-you can't be serious," he muttered.

"I'm afraid so," Piccolo soberly stated. "And that's not all... Chiaotzu... he... he was murdered." The Namekian glanced somberly at his crowd; each member began to react in different ways. But, overall... nobody was prepared to speak.

It was a rare occasion for a Z Fighter to be killed, and it always lead to an epic battle in which Goku would eventually save the day. But Goku was gone. Krillin was well-aware of that fact, and trembled in fear for the future. He would have to lead the Z Fighters into battle, if the alien wasn't alone, which was more than likely...

"W-we can always revive him with the Dragon Balls, r-right?" Gohan asked, breaking the initial silence. No matter what the problem was, if Piccolo was there, the young boy was always a little more optimistic.

The older turtle hermit sighed before shaking his head to Gohan's distraught face. "Chiaotzu has already been revived with the Earth's Dragon Balls once before. It is possible that he could be revived with the Namekian balls, but it would take months for us to reach them. I'm sorry, guys, but it looks like we will have to wait to revive Chiaotzu."

The Namekian crossed his arms over his chest and took in the moment for several seconds before looking at his apprentice. "The old man is right. And besides... we have bigger problems on our hands."

"What kind of problems?!" Bulma implored, raising her voice for all to hear. It was clear that everyone in the room was extremely nervous, including the typically-stoic Namekian.

"Just before I killed the alien, he told me that his "master" was coming to Earth in three years to eliminate us all. Supposedly this creature was only a scout; if that is true, then we have a lot of training to do," Piccolo stated in his sober tone. Before anyone could respond, they heard a loud gasp from the previously downed Tien.

Krillin stepped back as Tien gingerly crouched onto one knee, clutching his abdominal. He groaned in pain as several wounds quickly cleared up thanks to the restorative powers of the senzu bean. Immediately, he eyed around the room before the memories of his last fight slowly returned to his brain...

He clenched his fists and whispered a meek "Chiaotzu" before quickly arising from his position.

"I... I'm sorry, Bud," Yamcha told his friend- an action that got a quick nod in return.

"Tien, I defeated the alien who killed Chiaotzu... but we have a lot of work to do. In three years his master will arrive on Earth, and in case Goku doesn't return, we have to be ready." The Namekian glanced at Gohan. "Kid, let's go. I'm going to continue to train you."

Gohan brightened up slightly before strolling over to his friend, who gave a slight smile in return. Piccolo flew out the door and into the wind and Gohan followed after giving a wave to everybody, especially his mother. Strangely, she seemed to not care... Something was up with her. Gohan didn't have time to investigate now, but he figured he would have time soon...

Tien simply breathed heavily before leaning against the wall and staring at the ground. Was it his fault? After all, he failed to prevent Chiaotzu's death from Rabidus, and then he nearly died fighting against the murderous alien. Even though the tiny emperor wouldn't be around for quite some time, Tien knew that he would train himself to his very limits in order to prevent further death. Goku was gone; it was his time.

Bulma silently stood in the middle of the house. Vegeta would have to know about this- he was the strongest warrior on Earth. But would he be willing to fight? The beauty assumed so; she always thought that the Saiyan prince had really changed for the better after deciding to stay on Earth. It was only a matter of time before she found out...

Golar kept his stern stare at the wall of the Kame House. Everything he had prepared for was going in the opposite direction. The entire focal point of his arduous task was compromised with Piccolo's warning. And how was he going to change things?

* * *

Deep within the vast reaches of outer space, a massive spaceship silently crept through the emptiness. Of course, it wasn't really creeping, per se; it only appeared to be. In all realities, the behemoth of a vessel was cruising by at speeds unknown to mere planetary vehicles. The outer hull of the ship was a deep black, and it harnessed the dark feel of the ship's innards to display to the entirety of space how truly dastardly the inhabitants were; that much was obvious to even an uninformed onlooker.

On the bow of the black ship, several heads were piked. Each one was from a different culture of people; some were blue, some were black, some were red, etc. Only one thing truly dignified something common between the group of bloodied craniums: they were all cowering in fear. Eyes widened, mouths agape, eyebrows up. That is, if they HAD all of those features, and the amount of heads that did were few and far in between.

So who were the monstrosities that existed within the black frames of the ship? Not many people knew. It was said that the dreaded Lord Frieza was the most powerful and sadistic monster in the entire universe, but was that so? Only time would tell, and unfortunately for the peaceful people across the universe, it would be a lot sooner than they realized...

Frieza was certainly not peaceful, but as far as pompous civility went, he somewhat fit the bill.

And so, on his knees, the Arcosian wept. He clenched his bloodied fists together and attempted to hold back cries of terror and agony as his chest palpitated within his ivory skin. How could this have happened?! He was a GOD! Not some inbred weakling forced to deal with the whims of a slave-trader! His jail cell was tiny, and specially modified to deal with anyone of Frieza's power, which made the situation even more hopeless.

_Stupid... Worms... How dare they! I am... F-Frieza... _

Frieza stopped the furious pounding of the metallic ground, and slid back into a sitting position against the slime-covered wall of his cell. The damp feel of the prison combined with putrid stenches aplenty made a once proud king feel like a pitiful rodent. He furrowed his brow before releasing a glob of spit at the floor; unfortunately for him, even a modest action like such caused tremendous pain in his chest and mouth. With a groan, the Arcosian collapsed onto the floor, and to his disgust, a pool of gross liquid quickly overtook him: the combination of his own blood with the nearly-dried waste of past prisoners.

It was then that the creature decided to force his eyes shut and finally attempt to rid his mind of the horrors that had taken place. When he was picked up by the black ship-a true harbinger of death-he had believed it to be his father, in all his glory. But alas, he was incredibly mistaken. His nearly-annihilated self was nearing death by the second, and he blacked out before being loaded onto the ship. When Frieza awoke, he was shocked to discover his new self.

His body was completely renewed, and without a scratch to go along with it. Startled, the vain creature flexed his muscles and moved his hands; not a single nerve was damaged. Unfortunately for him, though, that was all about to change...

Instantly, he was taken from his hospital bed and thrown to the the floor. Scowling with disgust, Frieza attempted to fire a meager ki blast to eliminate such perpetrators; after all, he was the most powerful being in the entire universe! To his complete surprise, the blasts were merely knocked aside, and from there on out, it all went downhill. He was tortured, beaten, and thrown into the musky prison to suffer... all within a few hours.

And from there, the withered and torn Arcosian promised himself he would have revenge.

* * *

**Recommended Stories:  
**  
"A Tortured Soul" by KaiserNight

"Appule's Insurrection" by Pointer39

"Art of Survival" by Niteryde

"Break Through the Limit" by Captain Space

"Bringer of Death" by Npberryhill

"Cognitive Dissonance" by The Forgotten Phoenix

"Cold World" by jjgp1112

"Dragonball New Beginnings: The Ammit Saga" by KyLewin

"Dragon Ball Z: The Earthling Chronicles" by FinalFlashX

"Frozen Memories" by FireStorm1991

"Guardian" by Super Vegetarott

"In the Shadows" by Niteryde

"Justice Enforcer" by KaiserNight

"Kageto: The Saiyan Supreme and the Fate Protectors" by Kagetoworld

"To Live Again" by Niteryde

"Point of No Return" by Niteryde

"Rediscovering Honor" by LPphreek

"Saiyan Rising" by EFJRAD

"Second Chance" by Full Power

"Side Story- Sibling Ties" by FireStorm1991

"Sins of the Father" by Super Vegetarott

"The Yamucha Chronicle" by DoraMouse

"Zarbon's Rebellion" by FinalFlashX

**Also...**

"The Terror of Mewtwo" by LucifVegeta

"When Worlds Collide" by LucifVegeta and FireStorm1991

DISCLAIMER: Dragon Ball Z AH: The Atrox Saga is a completely non-profit story, made by a fan, for fans. I do not own anything affiliated with Dragon Ball Z.


	10. King Cold's Folly

Last time, on Dragon Ball Z...The Z Fighters explored the future of the alien threat. Roy recovered from his strange dream and spoke to Kami and Mr. Popo, but no answers were solved.

* * *

"GAH!" Gohan stammered, as he sailed through the air- a result of being hit in the face by Piccolo, his trainer and friend. The young boy skidded across the dirt-covered ground before halting in front of a boulder. Piccolo frowned, slight annoyance plastered on his face. In response, the demi-Saiyan gave a slight grin in attempts to lighten the mood, but Piccolo was resilient and continued his glare.

"Gohan, enough messing around! Those aliens aren't going to give you time to get up, so you better get that out of your system now. Now get up and give me everything you've got," Piccolo challenged as he squatted into his fighting stance.

Emitting a slight groan, the son of Goku awkwardly hopped onto his two feet and cracked his neck to the side. "You got it, Piccolo."

The Namekian allowed himself to smirk slightly at his protege's behavior. There was no doubt in his mind that Gohan had grown up a lot from the apprehensive, stifled phase during Vegeta and Nappa's assault on Earth. He was now becoming just like his father: determined, strong, and, unfortunately, naive. But his father was gone. And Piccolo knew from the bottom of his heart than the Earth could not be sufficiently protected without another Super Saiyan; Gohan was his best option, aside from Vegeta.

Shaking away his thoughts, Piccolo found himself being charged at by a smiling Gohan. With a slight snarl the Namekian sidestepped a strike and found himself being forced to dodge a multitude of blows coming in from every direction. If one thing was certain, the Saiyan certainly had spunk. Eventually, the difference in power seeped through as Piccolo found a slight opening to exploit, and he jabbed into Gohan's kidney with his right foot before striking him down with a shot to his neck. Despite the rush of intense pain pulsating throughout his upper body as he came colliding with the ground, Gohan found himself smiling.

There was something about training with Piccolo that gave Gohan a certain giddiness. Was it that his stoic behavior contrasted with Gohan's own personality, creating a harmonic balance? Or was it the fact that they cared for each other so deeply that sparring felt like a pastime? Regardless of the answer, the demi-Saiyan relished in these opportunities to engage in battle with the green creature.

Gohan brushed the dirt and grime off of his blue gi- given to him by Piccolo- and giggled to himself as he sat up. The Namekian crossed his arms and rotated his head to look the other way. Although he enjoyed seeing his best friend enjoying himself, he knew that they couldn't afford to waste time. The demonic army would be arriving in three short years; they needed all the time they could get.

With that in mind, the stoic creature frowned at his pupil's behavior. "Gohan, this is no time for games. It seems you're forgetting that we only have three years before those aliens arrive, and three years is not a long time- especially if what Rabidus said was true."

"I know, Piccolo," Gohan stated with a subtle smile. "But my dad should be coming home soon so it's fine!"

Piccolo growled at Gohan's increasing bout of happiness. "We don't know that! He could be out there for good, so that's no excuse not to train, Kid!"

Gohan instantly quivered his lip. "Th-that's not true... He's coming back soon! I _know_ he is!"

"But what if he doesn't!?" Piccolo roared in response, whipping his body around to stare at the young Saiyan. His eyes narrowed and his voice softened. "We have to be ready for anything, Gohan."

The young boy nodded slowly and hopped up from his sitting position. "Okay, Piccolo. Our friends are gonna count on me, and I won't let them down."

Piccolo allowed a light smile to shine on his typically stoic face. "I know you won't, Kid. Now c'mon!"

* * *

Roy landed at the Kame House with a new vigor to his soul- whether it was good or bad, he didn't know. His heart was pumping at incredible rates because of the sheer shock that Kami presented to him. SOMEONE was lying; that much was sure. Was it Kami? He claimed that the Kais, in all their secrecy, were trustworthy, wise, and kind. Was it the creature? Evidence suggested it, considering he appeared in what seemed like a dream or at least a dreamlike state. Roy shook his head in attempts to clear his mind as he began his trek to the doors of the beach home.

As soon as his black shoes reached the front porch, Roy halted his movement. Their were nervous voices inside... Krillin, Roshi, Chi-Chi, Yamcha... Golar...

_Well, great... He's probably trying to convince Krillin to do something for him. Maybe I can ask that creep if he thinks the Kais are evil or not! Then, I'll know that they are exactly the opposite of what he says!_

Roy frowned as he thought of the armored warrior, but continued to move inside the house. Although he opened the door expecting to be greeted in a large manner, that was not the case... Tien leaned against the wall and didn't even acknowledge Roy as he stared downward, seemingly in a trance. The red-shirted fighter furrowed his brow- something wasn't right. On cue, Krillin approached his friend to greet him, his teeth nearly chattering, and his eyes lifeless and sullen.

"Hey, Roy," Krillin muttered, continuing his nervous stare. "We've got some bad news..."

The taller warrior grimaced and crossed his arms over his chest. "I could tell from the mood. What's wrong?"

After exchanging a quick glance with Master Roshi, Krillin sighed. "Well, a little bit ago, one of my friends came and explained how he fought against this alien, and how in three years, some super-powerful army will invade the Earth... It doesn't sound good!"

Roy's eyes darkened and his face tightened along with it. "Krillin..." Roy began. "This... this is all my fault. I NEVER should have come down here! These must be the creatures searching for me... I... I'm sorry."

"It isn't your fault, Son," Roshi consoled from the other side of the room. His wise figure- complete with his orange robe and red sunglasses- steadily approached the nervous duo. "This couldn't be avoided; the Earth simply draws attention from evildoers."

"I... I don't know what to say." Roy frowned in frustration and looked at the older hermit. "If I wasn't here, they wouldn't attack the Earth. I have no doubt about that, regardless of what you say."

As Roy finished his sentence, he heard a slight chuckle emit from the man in the black armor. He raised his head to glare at Golar, but a firm, armored hand whipped forward and latched onto Roy's shoulder. "Do not beset yourself over these petty developments, Roy."

The red-shirted warrior rose an eyebrow to signal for Golar to elaborate further on his comment. Instantly, the armored creature lifted his hand from Roy's shoulder and folded his arms across his broadened chest. "You cannot do anything about the past. Even if you worry for all eternity, nothing will change. Nothing. What you can _always_ do, however... is prepare for the future," Golar stoically stated, his dark voice echoing across the Kame House walls.

Roy sighed and nodded; he was never one to blame himself. Generally, he was naive about most things not referring to battle, but this was different. He had dealt with tragedies his entire life; he knew deep down that he wasn't to blame. He just hated that Golar was the one who allowed him to think so. "Fine," Roy muttered, looking at Golar. "Thank you for that. I know you're correct, it's just tough when all these bad things are happening directly after I arrived on Earth."

"Your point does not fall on deaf ears, Roy," Golar stated confidently. "And for that, I have a proposition." The armored man looked at Krillin, who simply nodded. He turned back to look at Roy, who's face was mixed between nervous and confused. "Join me in my training, Roy. Together, we can accomplish unimaginable things, and we can help protect this world from harm."

The non-armored warrior pursed his lips together and frowned as he glanced to the side. "You really want me to train with you because you think I can be some sort of hero if I do? What's the difference between training with you and training on my own, or with Krillin?"

Krillin immediately interjected. "Roy, you saw my battle with Golar." The monk smiled lightly and shrugged his shoulders. "I just know that none of us are strong enough to really train you. Piccolo and Vegeta could, but Piccolo is training Gohan, and Vegeta... well, something tells me he wouldn't be willing to actually train you."

With a slight nod, Roy sighed. "I guess you have a point. Where are we gonna train, Golar?" Roy hesitantly asked. Getting to know and train with the armored warrior would be difficult, especially considering the distrust circulating around him. But of course, Krililn had a point. Roy didn't like to brag about his own power- which was sufficient, to say the least, compared to humans- but he knew that Krillin wasn't capable enough to generate a real increase in Roy's power through sparring.

"We will find a suitable location somewhere relatively close. We must consider every aspect; size, ground density, air pressure, climate, population... everything must be accounted for. An island somewhat close to here could work, if it contains a large enough area and a low enough population," Golar interrupted. He began to pace toward the door. "Roy, let us venture outward. We do not have nearly as much time as you may think."

Roy nodded and glanced at Krillin, who gave a shrug. "Well guys," he said, while slightly hanging his head. "We're off... I'll try to catch up with you whenever I can, all right?"

Krillin smiled heartily and nodded, while Roshi gave a quick wave. "Good luck, guys," the bald monk muttered while he watched the duo fly into the air and promptly exit through the door.

* * *

Zooming by the ruined planet came King Cold's massive vehicle. Behind it, the once proud land of Zurb lay in total destruction; just a hint of what the mighty king was capable of. None of it would have happened it it weren't for the "revolution". The short-lived empirical regime of King Pointer was just that: short-lived. The just King Mahimata had died peacefully, and as it was in Zurbian culture, a gladiator match would determine the next ruler. Pointer had handily won, as he was skilled in combat beyond the level of a typical Zurbian. And so, his radical plan to defect from the Arcosian rule began. After several months of preparation- halted agriculture growth, increase in slavery, mass weapons production, military training- the king believed his people to be ready.

Instantly, the dictator began to spread out his military force to nearby planets. Attempting to use stealth, the radical King Pointer swiftly conquered planet by planet; if they were to have a chance at overthrowing King Cold, they would need all the supplies, men, and ambush points that they could get.

Sadly, his plan did not turn out the way he had hoped. Not at all.

The bumbling Officer Phoenix (yes, "Officer"- King Pointer's son couldn't have a completely pointless position!) was put in charge of one task and one task alone: lead the bomb squad into Planet Kage and safely detonate atop the surface. The planet was relatively... well, tiny, and could be blown up with a few simple Zurbian bombs. Unfortunately, Officer Phoenix ran into some electrical trouble and had to signal for assistance.

While such a signal normally would not cause any mayhem, this one was different. Phoenix was a notorious computer hacker; ironically, he even sometimes bugged his own equipment by accident. This was no different. The signal was broadcast to all across the empire; every scum in the Planet Trade Organization, no matter how pathetic (yes, even Namole) received the signal.

King Pointer was furious. He began slaughtering innocents in attempts to scare King Cold away, but it only brought him closer. And within hours of his arrival, the King and his army had mercilessly crushed every facet of the rebellion. Every living being aligned with King Pointer was blown to pieces, their very extremities vaporized. And so, the king relaxed in his illustrious transport, finally away from his mission...

"Ho ho hum," the King muttered to himself gleefully. "A rebellion crushed, a vat of fleas disposed of, and now I can finally begin my search for Frieza!"

Cold laid his head in his right hand, which connected to his elbow that rested on the circular table in front of him. His large left hand stirred a tiny, metallic spoon that currently rested in his wine glass. "But knowing my son, he's probably already back at Arcos by now!"

The King tranquilly sipped from his clear glass, enjoying the savory delights of wine. Every ounce of his being remained calm as he thought toward Frieza, the near-dead Arcosian floating in space. He was all right. He was sure of it! But then, Cooler's behavior...

Frowning, Cold placed his glass down on the table. "Cooler," he began, as he continued to talk to himself. "You were most troublesome the other day. I haven't talked to you since! I do hope you aren't distraught over some girl or something... how peculiar if it were so. I always told Frieza that he had my looks, but I suppose you're decent compared to other Ice-jins..."

Breaking Cold's self-rant, a slight stammering was heard from the corner of the room. The eloquent king rolled his eyes and swiveled in his chair to look at the speaker. It was a short, radish-shaped alien with classic PTO armor and sweat flowing down his trembling red face. "Y-your majesty... sir... I... uh... I wanted to tell you that w-we have reached the outskirts of P-planet Namek."

"Wonderful, Srvell. Any signs of Frieza?" Cold asked with a raised brow.

The radish-shaped creature sighed and quickly looked downward toward the ground before shakily muttering "no".

Expecting Cold to be angry, the alien shriveled up and nearly burst into tears, but the king began to chuckle. It effectively broke the nervousness of Srvell, and he apprehensively glanced at the laughing king.

"S-sir?" He implored curiously.

The King slowly halted his glorious laughter and softly placed his arms onto the table. "Srvell, do not be a fool! It is quite obvious that Frieza has returned to Arcos. He is too powerful to succumb to such conditions in space!" Cold blissfully latched hold of his wine and chugged it down before silently placing it back on the table. "Tell the pilot we are to lightly scavenge the area in case my foolish subordinates _missed_ something. But once we _don't_ find Frieza, we will return to Arcos! Now get moving, Srvell!"

But Srvell didn't move. Instead, he gulped and glanced to the side. King Cold frowned and slammed his fist against the steel table, effectively cracking it and sending a tremor across the room. "SRVELL! Do you have something to say?!" He screeched, for the first time showing his dangerous Arcosian temper.

Bashfully, the alien swallowed once again and nodded quickly. "Sir... I-I believe it is best that w-we acknowledge the pos-possibility that Frieza is... dead... Going to Arcos would t-take us away from our schedule; we are supposed to make an a-appearance in the Tumultous Sector in several days, and-"

With a thud, Srvell's lifeless body collided with the floor. Slight bursts of pink blood spurted out of a thin hole in his chest, directly where his tiny heart was located. The King frowned in disgust and swiveled away from the sickening sight of pink puddles seeping through the dead alien's armor. His noticeably angrier visage looked outward into the vast reaches of space; somewhere, the king thought, Frieza was out there. If he wasn't... his very reputation would be tarnished. His very son would be dead. And _someone_ would pay.

* * *

Roy and Golar flew silently through the skies. The scenery below them was constantly changing. First, it was the picturesque, cerulean blue of the ocean quietly swaying below, and the cool and moist air rising up to greet the duo. As they continued, it became warmer (although the fighters didn't notice much- their auras during flight constantly kept the temperature around seventy degrees), and the calming water changed into island grounds overflowing with lush plant life. Even further, the ocean began to wither away and surface land began to appear. Mountainous regions- filled with several appealing traits that Golar deemed necessary- were coming into view.

And the entire time, nothing filled the air except for the sounds of nature. The cautious Roy constantly felt the eyes of Golar- despite being underneath his mask- dart towards Roy's and then quickly dart back forward. Roy still didn't trust him, and, of course, that meant he didn't want to speak with him- except when it was absolutely necessary. And then, there was something about the way that Golar acted in the air that made Roy feel uneasy. His ever mysterious self gave an aura of curiosity whenever he looked at the unarmored warrior. It was like he was trying to decipher the innards of Roy's very soul... just like every other hidden enemy he had ever faced.

Roy sighed and shook his head quickly as he adjusted back out of his thoughts. Whatever the case was with Golar, it didn't matter now. The two were going to be training together for years; any sort of distrust would have to be put to the side. Especially if the enemies were as powerful as Krillin believed.

After Roy broke his own thoughts, Golar glanced over at him and began to speak. "Roy, we are nearing what I believe is quite a suitable location for combat training. What can you tell me about such surroundings?"

Casually, Roy rose his left eyebrow. "You want me to tell you how I feel about the area?"

Continuing his straight flight path, Golar shook his head sideways. "Do not simply 'tell' me, Roy. I want you to feel the area... go through all possible scenarios of training. If you simply 'tell' me what you think, your thoughts will be rushed and you will not delve deep enough into your surroundings."

_Of course... _Roy thought to himself, slightly frowning and looking away from his new training partner. _I have no idea what he's talking about. I guess I'll just try to go through each of the requirements he made at Kame House..._

"Roy, your thoughts are wandering. I feel your energy jumping toward different places... focus!" Golar shouted, turning his helmet-covered head to seemingly glare at his "pupil".

"Uh, I mean... well... I guess the size is certainly apt for training. From here, the ground seems dense enough to contain our attacks." Roy glanced at Golar to see if the man was agreeing with him, and he was met with a nod. "Continue."

Roy nodded in agreement and allowed himself to slightly smirk. Despite his negative attitude, Roy felt like he would actually be learning something with Golar under the helm. After all, they hadn't even landed yet and the creature was attempting to teach him a lesson. But of course, Roy wouldn't allow himself to think like that. Not after what he'd been through. Still, though, he continued onward.

"Hmm... Let's see... the air is pleasant enough up here. Climate is pretty much constant from what I can tell... and there's no population at all in these mountains!" Roy paused in his flight and looked down at the scene below: slightly snow-capped mountains with green and forested areas lacing several of the whitened regions. The warrior looked up at Golar who was also looking down. "This looks like a great place to me."

Golar made no movements before slowly nodding, his black armor shining in the sunlight. "If you believe so."

Frowning, Roy crossed his arms in much the same way that Golar did. "What do you mean by that?"

"Well," Golar began, still crossing his arms. "It is quite obvious that you did not do what I asked. FEEL, not look. FEEL, not tell." Golar stopped his booming speech and pointed down below in a secluded area of the mountains, covered with shadows from peaks above. "Feel down there and THEN tell me what you believe."

Roy hesitantly nodded before performing the task. He had a sinking feeling that he would be getting a large lesson from Golar and that it wouldn't be very good for his self-esteem. But, to continue the task at hand, he sensed below. Instantly, he felt several weak energy signals: most likely a small town of humans. He looked up at Golar, curiously raising his brow. "It's just a small town; how is that important to our training?"

The armored being sighed, almost with disgust. "A small town? Roy! Look deeper!"

With a nod, Roy quickly did another scan of the area. Nothing new popped up; the only things sensed were lots of human energy signatures and several animal signatures, although those weren't treated as important, according to the Earthlings. That was a story for another day, however. He quickly looked at Golar with a sigh and then dropped his head down to avoid whatever punishment the shady character would give. "I don't sense anything new. I'm sorry."

Golar nodded his head once and looked back at the scene below. "I will tell you what you missed, and then I expect you to sharpen your senses as we go on. Feel below you, Roy. You should be able to not only feel energy patterns, but come to a sense of what those signatures are doing. And notice that the working population is doing one thing: lumberjacking. You can understand that that is how they make their economy flow- and do you see any lumber down below us? I only do in every forest clearing, and strangely, each clearing has a pathway built that leads back to that town. Do you understand, Roy?"

The unarmored warrior sighed and slowly looked away while pulsing his lips together in attempts to hide a frown. Although he definitely didn't want to admit it, Golar was correct. How could he have missed such an obvious situation? Apparently, Golar knew how he felt, and quickly extended his hand to place it on Roy's shoulder. The warrior was initially shocked but regained composure and nodded toward the blackened figure. "Yes, I understand."

Golar chuckled slightly and nodded before looking to another set of mountains. "Shall we continue in our search?"

* * *

**Recommended Stories:  
**  
"A Tortured Soul" by KaiserNight

"Appule's Insurrection" by Pointer39

"Art of Survival" by Niteryde

"Break Through the Limit" by Captain Space

"Bringer of Death" by Npberryhill

"Cognitive Dissonance" by The Forgotten Phoenix

"Cold World" by jjgp1112

"Dragonball New Beginnings: The Ammit Saga" by KyLewin

"Dragon Ball Z: The Earthling Chronicles" by FinalFlashX

"Frozen Memories" by FireStorm1991

"Guardian" by Super Vegetarott

"In the Shadows" by Niteryde

"Justice Enforcer" by KaiserNight

"Kageto: The Saiyan Supreme and the Fate Protectors" by Kagetoworld

"To Live Again" by Niteryde

"Point of No Return" by Niteryde

"Rediscovering Honor" by LPphreek

"Saiyan Rising" by EFJRAD

"Second Chance" by Full Power

"Side Story- Sibling Ties" by FireStorm1991

"Sins of the Father" by Super Vegetarott

"The Yamucha Chronicle" by DoraMouse

"Zarbon's Rebellion" by FinalFlashX

**Also...**

"The Terror of Mewtwo" by LucifVegeta

"When Worlds Collide" by LucifVegeta and FireStorm1991

DISCLAIMER: Dragon Ball Z AH: The Atrox Saga is a completely non-profit story, made by a fan, for fans. I do not own anything affiliated with Dragon Ball Z.


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